OLDHAM COUNTY, Ky. — Constructed in 1828, the second oldest standing courthouse in the state of Kentucky is undergoing renovations that will include new courtrooms and offices, while still preserving the historic part of the building.
What You Need To Know
- The Oldham County Courthouse project involves remodeling and preserving the historic building
- To start the process, crews had to lift the 880-ton structure off of its foundation
- Move of the courthouse expected to take place on March 1
- New Oldham County Judicial Center is expected to be complete in August 2024
Sandy Ames, the retail manager at Blooms Boutique has had an eye-level view of the Oldham County Courthouse for the last seven years.
“Even before I lived here, I would come up to the LaGrange, it's such a great little touristy place to come and shop on the weekends and stuff and that courthouse has always been a memory up here,” Ames said.
Now she has a front row seat to the historic building getting a face lift and a lift off of its foundation.
“I can't wait to see what it looks like when it's done,” Ames said. “I'm wondering how much they're still going to have of the green because there's the arts on the green, if they're still going to be able to do that, how big that building is going to be.”
Wehr Constructors along with Edwards Moving and Rigging, lifted the structure 2 feet on Monday and another 2 feet Wednesday.
“You can see they have four main beams that run across that are east to west, they're 84 feet long and they have built in jacks,” Cameron Mathis, project engineer with Wehr Constructors said. “There's 24 of them and they hold 50 tons a piece and the building is around 880 ton.”
Once the building is lifted 4 feet, crews are expected to start the sliding system March 1, ultimately pushing the building backwards 44 feet, 22 feet west and then 75 feet south.
“We've moved a house and stuff before but nothing to this extent, it's a solid brick structure,” Mathis said. “So they've tied it all together, there's suring inside that's kicked down to these beams and welded. So it's all tied in, it's all structurally sound.”
The first phase, the move, pouring of foundation and the building path for the 47,620 square foot addition is expected to be complete by August 2024. Preserving the original courthouse is a plus for Ames.
“It is a landmark here in LaGrange, I use it all the time for when people call and say where are you located? Across from the old courthouse,” Ames said.
The new Oldham County Judicial Center is expected to be complete in August 2024.