The historic Custom House in Wilmington will undergo renovations and an extensive expansion.
Elected and judicial officials broke ground on the project Monday afternoon.
Plans will restore the second-floor courtroom in the 15,000-square-foot building, which will be used for ceremonial functions and non-jury legal proceedings. And over 51,000 square feet of new space will be built in a wrap-around fashion.
Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice Collin Seitz explains the new space will serve several purposes.
“We’ve been in rental space for many years and the Supreme Court Justices in New Castle County have never had a permanent home, so this building and the project will become the permanent home of the Supreme Court," Seitz says. "But it will also become the home of the community court, which is going to focus on the city of Wilmington and the problems that plague the city.”
Seitz says the Community Resource Center will provide services to aid people struggling with mental illness, addiction, housing, employment, and other issues. The center is currently located in the Justice Center’s law library.
Seitz says it’s easy to tear down an old building and start anew, but this project is also about preserving history.
“Integrating the Custom House project into the Delaware Court system and into our complex here in the city of Wilmington is important, not just for the city of Wilmington but for the judiciary because it says to everyone that we value the third branch of government and we’re going to support it and recognize that the work they do is critical to the citizens of this state,” he says.
The federal government vacated the Custom House in 1973 and it was placed on the National Register for Historic Places the following year. Various developers used it as an office space until 1988. Wilmington University held classes there until 2004, and it’s been empty ever since. The courts acquired the building in 2018 and the project is expected to be completed in 2026, to the tune of almost $77 million.
