Nevada City Studies Courthouse Complex Reuse

NEVADA CITY — Nevada County is constructing a new courthouse and will vacate the current courthouse complex in Nevada City by 2031. What will become of the building has been a topic of community discussion, culminating in a public meeting on January 29th, studying potential future uses. Consultants for the county conducted a “Highest and Best Use Study,” which determined, based on several factors, that housing would be of the most value to the community. The study does not constitute a master plan or solution, and the authors emphasized that a long process, including community involvement, will influence the county’s direction.

Introduced by Nevada City Mayor Gary Petersen, Architect David Crotty with Nelson Worldwide summarized the various possibilities for the site and why housing rose to the top of the list. Crotty, Urban Economist Dena Belzer, and Design Leader Greg Lehman tried to balance community needs and financial feasibility. In a previous community meeting held late last year, the group summarized the project’s goals in the sentence: “A beautiful and vibrant space that is viable, sustainable, and generates community pride.” Everyone can get behind that platitude, right?

The public in attendance seemed evenly split between support for a housing project and wanting to explore other ideas. Generally, however, community members voiced the opinion that the historic courthouse should be preserved. Crotty and the consultants agreed, and the most likely plan will be to divide the site between the courthouse and annex buildings. The annex would then be remodeled to accommodate housing units or demolished, while the courthouse would be stabilized and preserved.

Possibilities besides housing suggested by the public and consultants included a parking structure, a park, office space, or an institutional use such as a museum or university campus. Uses are limited both by interest and by physical constraints. The lot is heavily sloped, and bedrock makes excavation below the surface costly. Because of those constraints, the consultants projected that reuse of the current building would be a much more appealing option for a developer considering return on investment, and housing would likely be the most profitable option.

One community member at the meeting brought up a potentially fatal issue with the consultants’ ideas: the possibility that vacating the site would trigger the need for new seismic code to be complied with. A former Nevada City mayor in attendance noted that there would be no future for the courthouse compound if that were the case.

Many ideas for reusing the historic courthouse building were suggested, including a museum, art space, storage space, or even using it as the starting house for an aerial tram to Sugarloaf Mountain. Though preserving the building is a top priority, most of the public agreed that the courthouse’s interior does not live up to its exterior appearance. Therefore, potential reuse would be limited, which led to at least one call to “fill it with gravel.”

With public comment considered, the Highest and Best Use Study will be finalized and presented to the Nevada County Board of Supervisors as an informational item. The Board will have the ultimate authority to decide the project’s direction. Discussions will also begin with the State, a 51% owner, on the divestment process. It is unclear whether a public-private partnership will ensue or the county will be allowed an exemption to sell the site entirely.