When trials and other civic business are being conducted a few years from now in the new Haywood County Justice Center, few of the arguments now being made will be remembered. That’s not because the new justice center will necessarily be a model of architectural genius and engineering efficiency; rather, it’s because the attention span of the electorate tends to fade very quickly, a fact proven by the successful election rate of incompetent incumbents year after year to local, state and national offices.

So now is the time for opponents to make a stand, and the questions being raised are valid. The problem, however, is that the machinations of this process have been glacier-like. That means decisions have been arrived at in a slow, methodical manner, but it also assures us that little short of some cataclysmic act of nature can stop it now.

Opponents have organized and have held meetings through the county over the last two weeks, calling into question many aspects of the $35 million project. They question the funding method, which will rely on certificate of participation bonds that have a higher interest rate than bonds approved by voters; they question the lack of input from the public and the lack of support that has fostered; and they are questioning the scope of the plan, which is based on long-range projections of growth and needs that are always suspect.

Of these arguments, the third seems to carry the most weight. The funding method is only suspect because the amount is so large. As for public input, the courthouse plan has been an issue since the election last summer and fall. That’s ample time for people to study the plan and offer input. Rushing in to complain when commissioners are closing in a decision seems unfair.

As for the size of the courthouse and the accompanying parking deck, it is easy to see why people are suspect. As Commissioner Mary Ann Enloe has said, law-abiding taxpayers seldom have business with the court system. They don’t understand trial calendars, delays, appeals and the sheer number of people who go through the system.

We are also being asked to project needs a couple of decades down the road. If the real numbers fall below the projections, the new justice center will be too large and money will have been wasted.

As commissioners prepare to vote for a final plan, perhaps another delay might serve them well. We have a location (downtown) and we have a few workable design options. Maybe another look at growth projections and space needs might save a few million dollars. Perhaps the parking situation needs some fine tuning.

A mistake on a project of this magnitude will waste a lot of money. And it’s not too late to garner support from those who - rightly or wrongly - still have a lot of questions.

 

Back to Top
The Smoky Mountain News