After months without elevator service, the Athens-Clarke County Courthouse is once again open for business.
The ACC courthouse has been without working elevators for the public since November 2024. Lisa Lott is Chief Judge of the Superior Court of the Western Judicial Circuit.
“We have been given approval by the state inspector, we passed inspection.”
She says the lack of elevator service was more than just an inconvenience.
“What the law requires in Georgia is that every court hearing with very, very few exceptions, are open to the public,” according to Lott. “And in order to be open to the public, you have to be able to have the public enter and exit your courtroom. If you don’t have a properly working elevator that’s not possible.”
Lott says the facility is undergoing several other improvements to create a better environment while they wait for a new courthouse to be built.
“We have cleaned out the, we hired a company, and they clean out all of the duct work in the building. We’re doing a lot of painting, we’re replacing carpeting. We have a brand-new AV system in the courtrooms. We are power washing the outside of the building. We also hired a reallocation company that has sat down with all the courts to talk about the space that we are all in and what we need in the future.
Lott says court proceedings have taken place in a variety of locations during that time, including the classic center, city hall, Oconee County, and more.
Lott says the second elevator should be approved soon.
