Judge urges county to keep historic courthouse and consider Boardman annex; commissioners schedule work session

Preliminary geotechnical and environmental reports for a proposed South Kinzua Mill courthouse site flagged possible soil contamination and recommended a phase‑2 study, including borings, that could add significant costs before construction.

Doug Earl of the county’s design team told the board that preliminary estimates for cut‑and‑fill work and compaction would be substantial and that borings and possible remediation could add at least $1.5 million plus additional study costs. Based on those findings and on a late letter from Judge Hill, staff summarized the judge’s recommendation: retain the historic Heppner courthouse while adding an annex in Boardman that could handle most hearings and jury trials for the northern part of the county. The judge argued an annex would improve access to justice because roughly 80% of hearings originate in the North End.

Commissioners debated the tradeoffs. Some members favored abandoning further excavation at the mill site given rising costs and recommended the fairgrounds as an alternate location; others said they wanted to hear Judge Hill’s rationale before changing course. County counsel flagged operational questions—including staffing and whether an annex would require increased court personnel—that would have budget and design implications.

The board voted to schedule a work session with Judge Hill to explore annex options, staffing and implications for state courthouse funding and to ask county designers to prepare additional site options and materials for that meeting.

The work session will aim to clarify whether an annex could be treated as a fully functioning courthouse for funding purposes, how it would affect staffing and operations, and the next steps for environmental testing if the mill site remains under consideration.