The Montgomery County District Court on Skippack Pike in Blue Bell will undergo extensive renovations beginning this spring.
More than 900 square feet of space will be added to the court, which is currently run by Magisterial District Judge Robert Soebeck.
The owner of the property, Blue Bell West PC, L.P., is shouldering the full cost of the upgrades as part of negotiations that will extend the county's lease of the court building for another 15 years. The previous lease expired at the end of December.
Gregory Honeyman, the financial administrator for the county's district court system, said the improvements are needed to repair "wear and tear" and to improve security in the courtroom and in the prisoner holding areas of the facility.
The renovations are expected to begin around April 1. When complete, the $75,000 renovations will bring the Blue Bell court in line with what Honeyman said was the "typical" 4,000 square foot size of the county's other district courts.
District courts handle arraignments and preliminary hearings in criminal cases, as well as the issuance and payment of citations for traffic violations, misdemeanors, and other minor offenses.
The new lease begins on February 1. The county will pay $22.50 per square foot for the use of the building under the new agreement.
