Perth’s new District Court Building was built to respond to the urgent need for more jury and video courts and better facilities for court users, staff and the judiciary. As a high profile project the construction was subject to rigorous review by the Western Australian Government at every stage, and required open, clear communication between all consultants to achieve the desired outcome.
The facility comprises of a 13 storey high rise, joined by a glazed atrium to a three-storey low-rise, with a total floor area of 27,000m².
It includes the following features:
- 24 courtrooms
- 20 jury courts
- Five hearing rooms
- 18 mediation conference rooms
- Judicial chambers
- Custodial area
- Holding cells
- Office areas & foyers
The inclusion of the separate circulation system for the judiciary, jurors, persons in custody, child and vulnerable witnesses addressed the potential sensitive privacy issues. Additionally the building is physically linked via an underground tunnel to the existing Central Law Courts to allow for further privacy if needed.
The vertical transportation solutions for the building were particularly important to the successful operation of the building and maintaining the separate circulation systems. The building has a limited floor space and consequently it was necessary to minimise the number of lift cores throughout the building. It was also necessary to take into consideration the need to transport a full jury up/down the building within specified sitting times in order to maintain court schedules.
To achieve the desired outcomes the following was implemented:
- Shared usage of nominated lifts by judicial and jury was implemented in order to minimise lift numbers, and was achieved by special control systems that ensured potential conflicts would be avoided.
- Special operator controls and car interior designs were implemented for the dedicated person in custody lifts in order to provide safety to officers and avoid potential damage to lift cars.
WGE carried out detailed computer based simulation modelling of the various lift services based on the respective population movements, and the final adopted solution achieved the client’s expectations for the lift services. Computerised monitoring systems allow the building security staff immediate access to all lift operating and alarm parameters as well as continuous location of lifts and operational status.
The fire detection and protection solutions for the building include addressable detectors and gas flooding systems utilizing FM200 gas, combined hydrant sprinkler system together with direct pumping from street mains.
