A new, state-of-the-art Santa Clara County courthouse is set to open in downtown San Jose, but there's a glaring problem many have noticed: The building does not have dedicated parking spaces.
The new $200 million family justice center, located next to St. James Park, is scheduled to open in a couple weeks. But no additional parking spaces were added to accommodate the eight-floor courthouse.
"It's a beautiful building; I know they've put a lot of hard work into it," said Mark Rosales, a county worker. "I'm excited to see how it looks inside. ... Parking, I think, is going to be challenging."
Some county workers told NBC Bay Area they’ve been advised to take public transit if they have business in the building - or to arrive extra early. Others have been assigned to park in a city garage two blocks away. But nearly every floor of that garage appeared to be about 70 percent full.
"They consolidated four courthouses into one," said Ingrid Stewart, a county court worker. "So that means Sunnyvale, PCP and two other courthouses located a few blocks away, they’re going to lose their parking, and they’re going to have to compete for parking here too."
A spokesperson for the court said Wednesday that he does not feel parking will be an issue because there should be enough spaces available downtown.
