JEFFERSON CITY, MO - U.S. Senator Kit Bond today joined Governor Matt Blunt, Congressman Ike Skelton, Mayor John Landwehr, General Services Administration Regional Director Brad Scott, and other local officials to break ground on the new federal courthouse in Jefferson City.

 

            “Construction on this courthouse could not come at a better time.  In the aftermath of this fall’s financial crisis, people are worried about their retirement funds, their savings, and especially, their jobs. The best thing that anyone can have to weather difficult financial times is a job and this project will create good paying jobs for Missourians,” said Bond. 

 

            Bond stressed that the new courthouse will be a much-needed impetus for economic growth in Missouri.  The new project will create 24,000 man-hours of construction work and up to 200 people on-site.  Also, the work on the courthouse project will be done by Missouri workers.  Kansas City’s J.E. Dunn Construction Company is the general contractor and the many other Missouri firms that specialize in design, engineering and construction are already involved in the project.

 

            As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Bond secured $66 million in federal funds for the courthouse project in the fiscal year 2008 Omnibus spending bill.  Bond previously secured $5.2 million for site selection, planning and design of the new courthouse and additional funds that determined the need for the courthouse.  Bond also recognized Congressman Ike Skelton for his work in the House of Representatives to make this courthouse project a reality.

 

            In addition to creating jobs for Missouri workers, the new courthouse will be safer for the public, judges and law enforcement officers than the current building.  In the old courthouse, judges and criminals shared the same elevators – an element that has led to courthouse violence in other states.  With approximately 118,294 gross square feet, the new courthouse will also provide the needed space to meet current and future case load needs.  The new courthouse in Jefferson City for the Western District federal court system will sit on the “Old Prison Site-West,’” which is located on the northwest corner of Lafayette and State Streets.

 

            As a long-time advocate of local, state, and federal law enforcement, Bond continues to be instrumental securing federal funds to create jobs and build new courthouses in St. Louis, Kansas City, and Cape Girardeau and crime laboratories in Springfield, Cape Girardeau and Joplin.

 

            “This courthouse will have a ‘Made in Missouri’ label, and our workers will be able to take pride in what they create,” said Bond. “I am proud to be a part of this effort and I thank each and every one of you for the part you’re playing in making the new courthouse a reality.”

 

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