New York State Sen. James Skoufis recently announced a $3 million capital grant for a courthouse renovation project in the City of Middletown.
The project will transform a former federal courthouse on South Street into a centralized city court with two full-time judges once completed.
At a press conference in Middletown on May 23, Mr. Skoufis stated, “This is just the latest brick in the wall here in rebuilding the city of Middletown, where we don’t want empty buildings.”
After the federal courthouse closed in late 2014, Middletown purchased the property with a previous grant. However, funding challenges delayed the conversion into a city court.
With the new $3 million grant, Middletown will cover only half of the $6 million renovation costs, according to Mayor Joseph Destefano.
Local municipalities in New York are responsible for providing adequate court facilities.
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Mr. Destefano stated, “This is a win-win for us,” suggesting that the adjacent property purchased with the grant could bring economic benefits.
“We believe it is a win for the state as well, as they can consolidate operations into one location,” he added.
The current Middletown City Court has outgrown its space and sometimes uses the common council chamber as a backup.
The renovation project is set to go out for bidding in the summer, with construction expected to take around a year and a half.
Once the new city court is ready, the current space will be upgraded for the Middletown Police Department’s use.
The grant secured by Mr. Skoufis comes from the State and Municipal Facilities (SAM) fund, which legislators can allocate for local projects.
In the latest state budget, $1.9 billion was allocated for the SAM program to be managed by the state Dormitory Authority and financed by bonds.
Last year, Mr. Skoufis obtained a $2.5 million SAM grant for a parking garage in downtown Middletown.
