New federal courthouse unusual downtown building

Greg Tuttle

Monday, May 8, 2000 | 11:22 a.m.

It's meant to be a centerpiece building in a city dominated by architectural extravagance. Its designer also hopes the new federal courthouse building in downtown Las Vegas will be a welcome sight for those with public business inside or simply passing by.

"We wanted the courthouse not to be seen as this hostile, impenetrable building, but a welcoming building," said Mehrdad Yazdani, a Los Angeles architect who drew the plans for the building that is nearing completion at 333 Las Vegas Blvd. South.

After more than five years of planning and construction, the doors to the Lloyd D. George U.S. Courthouse will swing open July 3. After a one-day break for the Fourth of July holiday, the $96.8 million building will become the permanent jobsite for more than 300 federal employees.

Those working in the 407,000-square-foot building include court employees, lawyers from the U.S. Attorney's Office and officials of the U.S. Marshal's Service. The state's two U.S. senators also will have offices in the building.

The building includes two grand jury rooms and 10 courtrooms, space enough to meet the needs of the nation's fourth most active federal court system for the next decade. Eight more courtrooms can be added by converting office space currently dedicated to the U.S. Attorney's Office, giving the building an estimated 30-year life span.

The Foley Federal Building, across the street, will undergo a four-year, $27 million renovation and will house five U.S. Bankruptcy Courtrooms and offices for several federal agencies.

A dedication ceremony will be scheduled for the new courthouse later this year, U.S. District Court Executive Lance Wilson said.

The entrance to the new courthouse is dominated by a 185-foot metal pillar supporting a canopy of steel. It resembles a giant palm tree and is meant to serve the same function.

The pillar and canopy provide both shade for the entrance plaza and a visual stimulus as sunlight and shadows are cast against the building throughout the day.

"Any time of the day or any time of the year it's going to have a different look because of the shadows cast" by the canopy, Yazdani said.

A large, white marble rotunda with a glass ceiling greets visitors. The flooring is a checkerboard pattern of dark- and light-colored marble that ushers people by its design toward the main floor hallways.

Outside the building is a blend of metal, glass and beige-colored limestone built in an L-shape design 15 stories high. The building actually contains only eight floors because of the high ceilings needed for courtrooms.

The stone, glass and polished steel combine to give the building a unusual look.

"It has a modern character but with traditional clothing," longtime U.S. District Judge Lloyd George said. The building is named after the 70-year-old former chief judge, who continues to serve on senior status.

The courthouse is also among the first federal buildings in the nation to be built with new safety features following the 1995 bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City.

Yazdani said the building's design was a collaborative effort among many people, including a team of architects, officials at the General Services Administration -- the agency that oversees all federal buildings -- and the federal judges and court officials in Las Vegas.

George said one of the early goals of the project was to mesh the traditional architecture of courthouse buildings with a more modern and inviting appearance. It was important the new building continue to symbolize the law as a "solid and significant" structure, he said, but it also had to "embrace" the city with its design.

"I always wanted the courthouse to be what courthouses were when I was a little guy -- the center of the community," George said.

Plans call for a public plaza near the entrance, complete with landscaping and granite benches. A fountain will also grace the plaza area.

Desert-landscape murals are planned for inside the building.

David Oka, Las Vegas Redevelopment Agency manager, said the new building will act as a magnet for future projects.

"I think it's a great building," he said. "It shows the viability of downtown."

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said the new federal building is a centerpiece to the city's downtown business core and a much-needed boost to his efforts at revitalizing the area. He praised the building's design and said it should set a new standard for future construction.

"It surpasses even the architectural genius that is on the Strip," the mayor said. "I love it."

Greg Tuttle covers federal offices for the Las Vegas Sun. He can be reached at 259-8813 or 380-8433 or by e-mail at tuttle@lasvegassun.com.