Politics

S.D. Agrees To Land Swap With State For New Courthouse

By Alison St John / Reporter

Published November 3, 2009 at 11:47 AM PST

This story was published more than 15 years ago.

San Diego County Supervisors have approved a land swap with the state that could result in a new county courthouse downtown by 2015

San Diego County Supervisors have approved a land swap with the state that could result in a new county courthouse downtown by 2015.

A California law passed in 2002 transfers responsibility for court buildings from counties to the state. Instead of simply handing over the court facilities, San Diego County has reached a deal that allows the county to keep control of two downtown court facilities in return for giving the state a block of land to build a new courthouse.

County Board Chair Dianne Jacob says the amended agreement benefits all stakeholders.

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“It’s a good deal for the courts,” she said. “It’s a good deal for the state, a good deal for the county and a good deal for the taxpayers, so, as Supervisor Cox says, it’s a win, win, win, win.”

The state has earmarked more than a billion dollars in bonds to build a 17-story courthouse in San Diego with over 70 courtrooms. In the current economic climate there’s no guarantee that promise will be kept.

Supervisor Greg Cox led the negotiations with the state. He says the offer of a prime downtown location makes it more likely the project will become a reality by 2015. Under the agreement, if the state constructs a new courthouse on the land the county is handing over, the state will also build a secure corridor from the facility to the county jail located next door.

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Alison St John currently serves as a general assignment reporter and occasionally co-hosts KPBS Midday Edition. She fell in love with KPBS Radio when she arrived in San Diego in 1985 and first heard NPR. She has been a voice on KPBS Radio since 1989, and has served as a news reporter for radio, TV and the web, as well as anchoring, hosting, producing and editing. Alison has reported on stories about North County and was based in the KPBS' North County Bureau. Alison covered the metro beat during the critical period of the San Diego City pension crisis, and the education beat while Alan Bersin was the controversial Superintendent of San Diego City School District. She covered health when the industry was converting to managed care and told welfare reform stories in the late 1990s when Clinton was “ending welfare as we know it.” She has covered land use issues extensively, looking at the challenges of meeting a growing population while preserving community character, and developing a better transportation system to meet environmental concerns. She has done many stories on the military in San Diego, and the series she edited on the challenges veterans face returning from active duty to civilian life won “Best of Show” from the San Diego Society of Professional Journalists. She occasionally hosts the KPBS Roundtable and KPBS Midday Edition. Alison has won awards from the San Diego Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Associated Press TV and Radio Association, and the California Golden Mike Awards. Alison was born in Tanzania, brought up in Scotland, and earned her degree in psychology and sociology from Durham University in England. Her postgraduate diploma is in student counseling. She worked in England, Nigeria, Switzerland, Belgium, India, and Japan before moving to the United States in 1981. She now lives in Oceanside and enjoys how her community is growing and changing.