Kanawha County Judicial building renovations expected to cost $16 million

CHARLESTON, WV (WOWK) – The Kanawha County Commission is negotiating the overall price to a long-awaited renovation project at Kanawha County’s Judicial building.

That project is estimated to cost more than $16 million, with plans to upgrade security on the first floor and add new office space to make room for three new magistrate judges and a circuit judge.

This follows the approval of House Bill 3332 in the 2023 Legislative Session, requiring that Kanawha County “have eight judges with the additional circuit judge to be elected at the regularly scheduled election held in 2024.”

Kanawha County Commission President Lance Wheeler said the commission has received two bids . The lowest one was $16 million, nearly $3 million more than they originally predicted.

“We got an estimate of about $13.5 million for the renovations. We put those out to bid. Like a lot of bids recently, they came above budget, around $16 million. One of the things we know is state law allows us to negotiate those prices with the lowest bidder and seeing where we can probably save some money for the taxpayers. We’ve started those conversations,” Wheeler said.

He predicts Wednesday’s commission meeting will provide more clarity on the estimated price.

“I feel we are going to find some savings, but at the end of the day, this is going to be an expensive project,” Wheeler said.

The commission has until the end of October to try and cut the cost down in any way possible while negotiating that $16 million.

“I feel we are going to find some savings, but at the end of the day, this is going to be an expensive project,” Wheeler said. “We knew that coming into it. We had those concerns it was going to be over budget. It’s really finding out ‘how are we going to pay for this,’ that we are required to do by state law while also making sure we are being respectful with the taxpayer money.”

Renovations are supposed to begin once they finalize the overall cost, but the project won’t be completed until at least 2026.

“I feel comfortable that we’re going to figure something out to make sure that the project starts on time, that the judges are able to work around the work schedule of the contractor in place, and that it’s going to be something that’s financially affordable for the taxpayers,” Wheeler said. “Again, this is because the county commission went debt free in 2023. It’s put us in a financial position that we’re able to put these renovations into a public space, like the judicial annex.”

Wheeler also said the commission has worked closely with several judges, including Chief Judge Maryclaire Akers, and the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office to find ways to work around their court hearings and proceedings and continue with the construction while providing security upgrades.

“One of the things that we did is we worked with the judges and asked for their input. Some of those were concerns about where the jury members were. Currently, a lot of the jury have to go by the defendant to get to the jury room, and we want to make sure their security is looked at, making sure they’re protected, making sure the judges are protected,” Wheeler said.

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