Court space crunch plagues city

BANGOR – Which county functions should stay together and which could be moved off-site were among the questions officials grappled with Tuesday while discussing space needs.

The brainstorming exercise during Tuesday’s Penobscot County commissioners meeting was part of an effort to ease the space crunch plaguing the state court system and several county operations, among them the crowded jailhouse.

While no decisions were made this week, it seems everyone wants more space. Some of the big questions now are how to meet, and how to pay for the space needed.

“Where the hell is the money going to come from?” Commissioner Tom Davis wanted to know. As he sees it, county taxpayers are at their limit. With the state facing a two-year budget deficit that could exceed $200 million, he wondered if the state could afford its share of the cost. “We’re standing here talking to the man with empty pockets,” he said.

Commissioner Peter Baldacci, chairman of the three-member panel, took a different view: “I think not doing something is costing us money,” he said. For instance, the county is forced to spend $250,000 a year to board prisoners out to other jail facilities because of overpopulation at the county jail in Bangor.

County leaders are working to resolve the space issue with officials from the state and city of Bangor, which owns the W.T. Grant building, a nearby former department store that might figure into the solution. Constraints with which they must contend are limited space and funds, parking pressure and heightened security needs.

The goal is to reach consensus on a draft proposal for presentation in September to Chief Justice Leigh Saufley, who requested a plan during a March visit. If the plan passes muster, the next step likely will be to pursue state funds for court improvements and parking.

For planning purposes, various users have been asked to project their facility needs for the next 20 years.

Those involved are contemplating a campus-type setting that would house District and Superior courts, the law library and some county functions. They say the campus concept would help maintain efficiency while containing cost. Saufley concurred.

While state court space issues prompted the search for a solution, the court isn’t the only unit in need of more space.

The jail, overhauled in 1988, is at or over capacity most days, and there isn’t enough space for all the court records that need to be maintained. The district attorney’s office, which now has 4,260 square feet of space, estimates it needs triple that.

A site sketch prepared by WBRC Architects and Engineers shows that there’s only about 61/2 acres to work with.

The area, bordered by Hammond, Central and Court streets and the Kenduskeag Stream, houses the county courthouse, the district attorney’s annex, the jail and Bangor District Court, all owned by the county.

Also there are the city-owned Bangor Police Department and W.T. Grant building, parts of which Cadillac Mountain Sports is leasing.

On Tuesday, it was clear that more information would be useful to those involved in the planning.

For starters, discussions about the possibility of regional jails have just started around Maine. While the talks offer little help in the short run, regional jails could offer long-range opportunities to relocate part or all of the county’s jail operation to another site.

Also, space needs at the county’s dispatch center could increase should Bangor, Lincoln and Old Town sign on.