The circuit court clerk’s office and records room on the first floor the Rockbridge County Courthouse will reopen for business tomorrow, Thursday, July 24, after being closed for much of the past two weeks because of water damage caused by an activated sprinkler head on July 12.
The second and third floors of the courthouse will reopen this Monday, July 28, when court proceedings will return to generally normal operations. Over the coming weeks and months, individual floors and/or areas of the courthouse may be temporarily closed to public use as ongoing repairs such as floor covering replacement are to be taking place.
According to a county press release issued Tuesday, “court, county and sheriff’s staff will collaborate to ensure the least possible disruption of normal business during this time. Changes, if any, in court locations while work is being completed will be announced to the public.”
The release continues: “While this was a challenging situation, the swift, cooperative and collaborative efforts of all parties, including court and county staff, the sheriff’s department, city of Lexington building, fire and public works officials and Holland’s General Contractors staff combined to keep the wheels turning.
“We are also greatly appreciative for the assistance offered by the city of Buena Vista and the Buena Vista sheriff’s department, as well as [Washington and Lee University] staff, who provided us with alternative locations to hold court. Finally, we are appreciative to the residents who had to make adjustments to conduct court business and to court staff and legal professionals for their understanding and cooperation.”
The release goes on to say that any new information on the restoration process will be shared with the public as it becomes available.
On the afternoon of Saturday, July 12, a sprinkler head on the third floor hallway discharged, spraying water all along the hallway that seeped through the floors and ceiling below, soaking the hallways of all three floors. Most of the damage was confined to the hallways of all three floors.
