Celebrating a new courthouse

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 20:28:00 GMT

BY TOBY HENRY

Candia District Court was visited by more than 30 state and local officials on Monday, Sept. 29, as they attended the official introduction of the state’s newest justice building.

“It’s a beautiful facility, it certainly gives them enough room to conduct court business, and it’s centrally located,” said former Auburn Board of Selectmen Chairman Harlan Eaton. “I would have liked to have kept in in Auburn, but it wasn’t in the cards. I’m very pleased it came here.”

The new Candia District Court on Route 27 (Raymond Road) officially began hearing its first cases in late July after it replaced the now-defunct Auburn District Court on Priscilla Lane. Last year, state officials chose Candia for the site of a new district court to serve the residents of Auburn, Candia, Raymond, Northwood, Nottingham and Deerfield because that town is located in the center of the district it serves.

Officials who spoke at the open house praised the work by Severino Trucking, the local contractor who built the facility.

Linda Hodgdon, commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services, hailed company head Ron Severino for his vision in crafting the building’s traditional brick exterior with its notable Roman columns.

“He really put a lot of himself into it, with a lot of nice finishing touches,” she said. “Very thoughtful.”

As he addressed the crowd in one of the courthouse’s two courtrooms, presiding Judge David LeFrancois said the courthouse was the culmination of discussion that began as early as 2001 on where the new courthouse should be. LeFrancois said that even seven years ago, a number of problems were affecting the Auburn court building, and ultimately, more than a dozen locations were looked at before Candia was chosen.

“What we have from that seed that began in 2001 is ... a beautiful new public building,” he said. “What we have now is a district (court) that is smack in the middle of our six towns.”

Commissioner Hodgdon also said the new building, which was designed by Mary Belecz of the state Bureau of Planning and Management, may ultimately “become the template” for future court buildings across the state. Area officials including Candia Selectmen Chairman Fred Kelley to Chairman James Headd of Auburn’s Board of Selectmen gave the new building high marks.

Headd recalled a time only a few decades ago when visiting circuit judges had to make do with the crowded court conditions in the basement of the Auburn Town Hall.

“I remember pictures of people hanging on the stairs,” he said. “If you had a rather interesting civil trial, you couldn’t pack the people in.”

Police Chief Michael McGillen also noted that new hightech touches such as a camera system and a lockable defendant holding area add a new level of security that the former court lacked.

“We’re very pleased with the facility,” he said.

Candia News : Candia District Court

Celebrating a new courthouse