One floor of the Shasta County Superior Court remains closed nearly three months after a water leak caused significant damage to the $175 million court building that opened in Redding early last year.
Notes taped inside the structure’s elevators on Thursday said the second floor was “currently closed for construction.”
The notes directed people with court business on the second floor to alternative courtrooms elsewhere in the building “until further notice.” Stairs leading from the first floor up to the second level were also roped off.
Shasta Superior Court Executive Officer Cody Stenderup confirmed via email the second floor has been closed since water damaged several floors on May 10. “The courtrooms on the second floor of the courthouse have been closed for repairs since the May incident,” Stenderup said via email.
After repairs were made in May, the court’s operations resumed on May 20, said Stenderup. However, the second floor of the courthouse still needed to be put back in order, requiring some services to be temporarily moved.
Stenderup referred questions about when the second floor would reopen to the public to the building’s owner, the Judicial Council of California.
“Our council’s Facilities Services team is working on the scope and schedule for the rest of the repairs, but we’re not sure when those will be finalized,” said Blaine Corren, who handles public affairs for the Judicial Council.
The serious water leak that happened on May 12 led to the entire courthouse to be temporarily closed to the public at that time due to “significant damage,” according to a fax from Tamara Wood, presiding judge of the Shasta County Superior Court.
Water apparently got into the building between the night of May 9 and the morning of May 10, when the damage was discovered. Officials said a broken coupler located on the second floor of the courthouse sparked the damage.
The water “caused significant damage to the second floor (which houses our criminal home courts), first floor (which houses our filing system and clerks’ office), and ground floor,” Stenderup said via email.
Repairs were needed in the court’s basement, as well as on the building’s first and second floors, due to damage to walls, fixtures, flooring and some ceiling tiles, said Merrill Balassone, a spokesperson for the Judicial Council of California, via email.
The May leak was not the first to be reported at the courthouse, which became the tallest building in Redding when it opened in February 2024.
A lawsuit filed in October 2024 in Sacramento County Superior Court by the company that constructed the building, Sundt Construction, alleged that subcontractor Iron Mechanical Inc. turned on water to the building on Oct. 18, 2022 without checking to ensure the system was watertight.
It is not known if the May 2024 water leak was related to what allegedly happened in October 2022.
Michele Chandler covers dining, food, public safety and whatever else comes up for the Redding Record Searchlight/USA Today Network. Accepts story tips at 530-338-7753 and at mrchandler@gannett.com. Please support our entire newsroom’s commitment to public service journalism by subscribing today.
This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Water-damaged floor of Shasta County Courthouse still closed. What’s ETA to reopen?
Reporting by Michele Chandler, Redding Record Searchlight / Redding Record Searchlight
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