Nassau must finish building family court, address failures

The poor and unacceptable conditions at Nassau County’s Family Court have been the source of concern for decades. 

 "There is a certain dignity that has to be involved in our courthouses if the public is to have respect for the law," New York Chief Administrative Judge Jonathan Lippman told Newsday in 2001, citing Family Court as a place that needed improvement. "And courthouses that are not adequately maintained risk becoming a danger to the public."

More than two decades later, Nassau residents are still waiting for the needed structure to dignify the proceedings inside that solemn place. As Newsday’s Scott Eidler recently reported, the effort to construct a new family and matrimonial courthouse “is years behind schedule, mired in cost ovplaceerruns and legal disputes with contractors.”  

The problems at the under-construction Mineola building, which would replace the current outdated home of Family Court in Westbury, are myriad. In lawsuits, Nassau is fighting with architects and builders over design flaws and millions in unpaid bills. Contractors have had to repair defective materials and charged the county extra for unforeseen electrical work. 

The projected cost of renovating the county's former social services building has soared from an estimated $100 million in 2005, to $168 million in 2013, to $214.6 million by 2020, with the costs continuing to escalate. And it’s at least four years behind schedule for completion. Originally intended to open in 2021, the Department of Public Works commissioner recently told legislators that the doors won’t open until 2025. 

Why is this building — like too many other public works projects in New York — taking so long to finish, with a price tag that keeps ballooning? Why didn’t the county, from the start, just demolish the old social services building and start anew, rather than claiming it could save money by reusing the shell of the old building and trying to renovate it? 

But our concerns here are about more than just money and construction lawsuits. 

For decades, judges, lawyers and the people who rely on Family Court for justice in Westbury have faced overcrowded conditions. Too often in hot and cramped rooms and hallways, the highly sensitive conversations between attorneys and litigants have taken place without any sense of privacy.

The potentially volatile matters discussed in Family Court deal with some of the complex and deeply personal aspects of life. Judges are asked to render wise Solomon-like decisions on questions of adoption, custody of children and visitation among divorced parents, court-ordered support to children and ex-spouses, paternity, violence among family members, abuse and neglect of children, and children accused of crimes as minors.

These failures and an expedited schedule for completion must be addressed by Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, elected two years ago on a promise of professionalism. He called these delays “unacceptable,” as is plain for anyone to see. Blakeman is not to blame for these decadeslong delays, but he must now bear the responsibility for getting the job done.