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New County Courthouse Officially Opens
60,000-square foot facility provides atmosphere of dignity and justice
by Margaret Sternberg
 | | The official ribbon cutting for the courthouse. Ninth Judicial District Administrative Judge Francis A. Nicolai, center, flanked by County Executive Robert Bondi and Judge James Reitz. |
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With a number of prominent county officials in attendance, the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new county courthouse took place April 2, 2008, roughly three months after the courthouse unofficially and quietly debuted.
County Executive Robert Bondi, who acted as Master of Ceremonies, recounting the history of the project, said that it began in the midto late- 1980's, crediting several past judges in bringing the project along, but attributing to Judge Francis Nicolai, Administrative Judge of the Ninth Judicial District and the guest of honor that day, the bulk of the credit in bringing about "all the good things that we have in front of us."
Whether or not intentionally drawing a contemporary parallel, Mr. Bondi said that financial constraints at that time were an issue with funding the courthouse, the County eventually finding a compromise the taxpayers could afford.
The courthouse, Mr. Bondi said, has been brought in "substantially…on schedule" and under budget, with the most recent figures showing that $1.665 million has been saved in construction costs on a $19,881,682 budget.
Judge Nicolai, keeping his remarks short on the project's history, unintentionally brought laughter to the audience, when he called the site of the courthouse "the right location for the County of Westchester." However, on a solemn note, he said that "for many, many years, under very, very difficult circumstances the judges of this county carried out their most important responsibilities…in a remarkable manner…and, collectively, those individuals who are under the umbrella of the Office of Court Administration for many years, under some trying circumstances did a superbly, outstanding job."
John W. Sweeney, Jr., associate justice for the Supreme Court Appellate Division First Department and senior resident justice in Putnam, recalled a time when two county judges' chambers were "in half a hardware store in Cold Spring," or "right across the driveway in what is now the County Clerk's office, but at that time was a Chevy dealership."
Irene Schech, who has been Commissioner of Jurors since 1978, said that over the years she has jokingly said that she would not retire until the new courthouse was completed and that, with that now the case, she is now in a position to consider retirement.
Schech called the historic courthouse "truly lovely," but said that conditions were crowded. The new courthouse offers "plenty of room." Feedback from jurors has been positive, she said. The new courthouse has a central jury room and lounge, neither of which were available in the historic courthouse due to its space constraints. Schech said that following orientation, jurors are now more comfortable, with access to vending machines, coffee, reading material and a television to come, creating a more relaxing atmosphere.
Judge Sweeney, echoing a theme that was reiterated in most of the speeches that day, said "We know about the sub-standard facilities that we've had, that we've presented to these people - often dangerous, at the very least undignified, but to know now that the County Executive and the County Legislature…have given us a facility that the people of Putnam County can be truly proud of what they have, knowing that they're coming to have their problems solved, their disputes settled in an atmosphere of dignity and justice that is so appropriate for them, and I think is what we owe them at the very least."
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