ST. THOMAS, ON - Infrastructure Ontario and the Ministry of the Attorney General announced today that Integrated Team Solutions (ITS) has signed a contract to design, build, finance and maintain a new consolidated courthouse in St. Thomas.

Today's announcement signifies that all contractual steps have been completed and construction can start in July 2011, beginning with work on the heritage courthouse.

The new courthouse will be constructed on Wellington Street on the site of the historic Elgin County Courthouse, which will be incorporated into the new facility. The new building will consolidate St. Thomas's two courts: the Superior Court of Justice, temporarily located on Silver Street, and the Ontario Court of Justice, located on Curtis Street.

The new courthouse will improve access to justice for the County of Elgin by increasing the number of available courtrooms and will provide better access and security while improving health and safety standards.

St. Thomas Consolidated Courthouse project highlights include:

  • a new multi-storey building with space to accommodate eight courtrooms and three conference/settlement rooms;
  • a commitment by the government to meet the Canada Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver standard, incorporating environmentally sustainable construction practices and energy efficient design;
  • an extensively refurbished historic Elgin County Courthouse and former Land Registry

Office will be incorporated into the new consolidated courthouse.

The value of the contract with Integrated Team Solutions in today's dollars is $249 million. When adjustments for anticipated inflation are made for the 30-year contract term, the contract value is $328 million. This covers the design and construction of the facility, building maintenance, life-cycle repair and renewal, as well as project financing.

The construction project will boost the regional economy by creating and supporting hundreds of jobs. At the peak of construction, it is estimated that 120 workers will be on site daily. Construction of the new courthouse is expected to be completed in 2014.

Infrastructure Ontario is working with the Ministry of the Attorney General to develop the new courthouse. Infrastructure Ontario is a Crown corporation dedicated to delivering some of the province's larger and more complex infrastructure renewal projects, on time and on budget; managing one of the largest real estate portfolios in Canada and providing real estate services, such as asset management, and property and land management; and providing the public sector and not-for-profit organizations with long-term financing to renew public infrastructure.

Visit www.infrastructureontario.ca for more information.

 

Hon. Chris Bentley, Attorney General

 

“We are working closely with the community and our justice partners in the area to build a courthouse that will improve court operations and ensure better access to justice for everyone in the St. Thomas area.”

Hon. Bob Chiarelli, Minister of Infrastructure

 

“Not only will the St. Thomas Consolidated Courthouse improve access to justice services in the region, but it will also be a green building, meeting rigorous requirements for energy management and conservation.”

Contact:

Brendan Crawley
Communications Branch
Ministry of the Attorney General
(416) 326-2210

 

Tom Boreskie
Infrastructure Ontario
(416) 212-6447

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