Harris County jurors to return to renovated downtown building Monday

Harvey gutted Houston’s criminal justice complex — and the Jury Assembly Plaza with it. The gathering place for prospective jurors at 1201 Congress is set to reopen Monday with a fraction of normalcy not seen since August 2017, when floodwaters broke into the predominantly underground facility from the roof. The difference? A fresh look with walls and chairs that can be hosed down and cleaned in case of — knock on wood — another flood. The return to downtown Houston follows the completion of the $11.9 million renovation project — partially funded through insurance and FEMA reimbursments — among Texas’ busiest court system.

About 525 people are expected Monday. Full occupancy, which can account for up to 2,000 people, is not anticipated until the pandemic subsides, Harris County District Clerk Marilyn Burgess said. Burgess toured the building before construction started in February 2020 and what she saw was a shadow of what it once was. “The place was gutted, completely, to the rafters,” said Burgess, who in 2019 took over the office. “Everything had been sheet rock and theater cushion seats before. All of that had to be trashed.” The project wrapped up last fall with furniture — delayed, of course, because of pandemic production lags — being one of the last items to go in, she said. Construction crews in 2011 built the jury building with Tropical Storm Allison in mind. Car-sized flood doors were installed to protect the lower section from potential floodwaters in the tunnels to other county buildings. Despite the Harvey flood damage, jury service continued inside a cramped basement at the county’s administrative building at 1001 Preston.