Martinsville aims to convert municipal building to courthouse

The City of Martinsville has entered into an agreement with architecture firm Moseley to begin the planning process to convert the city’s municipal building into a new courthouse.

The plan was approved by Martinsville City Council on June 24. According to a news release from the city government, the renovation project will cost “roughly” $46 million and take 12 months for design and permitting and 30 months of construction. The courthouse will be “designed to serve Martinsville for decades,” the release said.

The move comes following a show cause order entered by the Martinsville Circuit Court in September 2024, stating that the Martinsville General District and Juvenile & Domestic Relations Court facilities were not up to state law requirements.

A fact sheet posted online by the city states that the court building is unable to meet state-required standards without major renovations and expansions, citing specific issues with the size of the courthouse.

City Council stated that Martinsville was left with two options: to build a new courthouse at a cost of about $100 million or renovate the municipal building for the court’s use, which the city touted as a way to decrease the overall cost by over 50%.

“As the current Municipal Building has served the public since 1968, it is an inevitable reality that the facilities are in need of major renovations to meet the needs of our citizens today,” Martinsville Mayor L.C. Jones said in a statement. “With other localities across the state facing the same challenges to keep court facilities compliant with state regulations, we feel moving forward with the most cost-effective option available is the best direction to protect our taxpayers while improving Court services.”

The city’s fact sheet stated that the current municipal building “is not physically capable of meeting current state requirements through maintenance alone,” necessitating the long-term plan.

The project will be phased to keep the courthouse operational during construction. During construction, several city departments will be moved to One Ellsworth, a mixed-use complex and former bank building in uptown Martinsville.

The city did not state a potential start date for construction or an estimated date of completion for the project.