Morris County Courthouse Expansion Project Breaking Ground

Morris County Courthouse Expansion Project Breaking Ground

The County of Morris is starting a long planned and publicized construction project to expand its courthouse campus, thereby meeting the security and space needs of the New Jersey Judiciary courts and staff stationed in Morristown. 

The project, which will take approximately 24 months to finish, involves the construction of a new criminal courthouse facility on the open-air parking lot and part of the adjacent pocket park along Schuyler Place.  The building will be eight (8) stories to accommodate eight (8) new courtrooms and additional space to meet the New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts’current standards and requirements for courtroom security and design.

Counties in New Jersey are obligated to provide sufficient court facilities for the state Superior Courts, and Morris County is among several counties that have been compelled to take on these large capital projects.  

Important Facts:

• The historic Morris County Courthouse facing Washington Street IS NOT being demolished and the new courthouse is not being built on that footprint. The historic building, which underwent extensive refurbishing and roof replacements in 2024, will continue to be preserved.

• The new facility is being designed to accommodate existing state Superior Court judges, staff and services, not expand operations.

• The pocket park facing Washington Street will not be accessible during construction, but more than 60 percent of the space will be restored as a greenway when the project is completed.

The new building will include jury assembly areas as well as collegial chambers for the judges.  A new main entrance to the county’s courthouse complex and the county Administration and Records Building will be constructed facing the corner of Washington Street and Schuyler Place. 

This new building will replace antiquated space and facilities attached to the historic Morris County Courthouse complex located between Court Street and Western Avenue, where security, access for people with disabilities and safety systems are inadequate.

Morris County is working to minimize the disruption along Schuyler Place during the construction, but inconveniences are inevitable.

In cooperation with the Town of Morristown, Schuyler Place will be reduced to a 20-foot travel width and all but two street parking spaces will be removed. However, replacement parking for store patrons and visitors already has been provided.

Morris County and the Morristown Parking Authority have reallocated parking spaces available just steps away on the Schuyler Place level of the authority’s Ann-Bank Garage (30 Schuyler Place Building).00 The parking spaces have been marked with a 2-hour time limit.  Temporary loading and unloading from the businesses and residential properties will still be permitted on Schuyler Place. 

There will be certain days that Schuyler Place may need to be closed intermittently to vehicular traffic. Advanced notice will be provided to those affected along Schuyler Place, and the Town of Morristown will have police directing traffic on those specific days.

Work hours will be 8a.m. to 5 p.m. during the week. There is no work anticipated for evenings or on Saturdays, Sundays or major holidays. Construction workers will be required to park at the Headquarters Plaza Building, maintaining parking in the construction area for residents, shoppers and local employees.