U.S. Senate Approves $121 Million for Fresno
Courthouse Construction
September 20, 2001

Washington, DC - The U.S. Senate last night unanimously approved the FY '02 Treasury-Postal Appropriations Bill, which included $121.23 million of funding for the Fresno Courthouse construction project.

"As a member of the Senate Appropriates Committee, I am very pleased that the United States Senate last night approved an appropriation of $121.23 million for the construction of the Fresno Courthouse," Senator Feinstein said. "This is great news for Fresno as this new facility will help replace a facility that no longer meets the community's needs."

The eight-story, 383,000-square-foot courthouse will be built a couple blocks away from the existing federal building at Fresno and O streets. The new courthouse will replace a 36-year old facility that is seismically deficient, overcrowded, and unsafe.

The judicial district served by the Fresno courthouse ranks sixth in the nation in the number of pending cases, has the eleventh worse crime rate out of 94 districts, and is expected to hold 20 percent of California's total population within a decade.

In addition, the Treasury-Postal bill included $13,070,000 for repairs and safety improvements to the Edward Schwartz Federal Building in San Diego, and $11,711,000 for repairs to the Chet Holifield Federal Building in Laguna Niguel.

Senator Feinstein requested this funding as part of her role as a member of the Appropriations Committee. The amendment to include funding for the Fresno courthouse is pending in the U.S. House of Representatives, where it was advocated by Representative Cal Dooley (D-Fresno).

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