COURTROOM ADDITIONS TO BE CONSIDERED.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Staff Writer

Ventura County supervisors today will discuss adding six courtrooms to a $64 million Juvenile Justice Complex scheduled to be completed in June 2003.

The six courtrooms would cost $14.9 million and would handle both dependency and delinquency cases. The addition also would include office space for social service and county justice.

``This would start the preliminary work,'' said John Johnston, chief administrative officer.

Design work has been completed on a 240-bed detention center and two commitment programs totaling 180 beds. Construction bids are due May 24.

While a master plan approved by the board in December 1998 included the court facilities, the courtrooms were omitted from later plans because no state money was available.

But county officials said that there is a substantial demand for juvenile court facilities, and the demand is expected to continue.

County officials also pointed out numerous advantages of having a juvenile courts within the complex including enhanced security, elimination of exposure to adult inmates; and the ability to segregate detainees of gangs.

``The hopes are that if we find the money for the design and construction, we could have them finished at the same time,'' said Joan Splinter, division manager of the Juvenile Justice Construction Project. ``We would then have all juvenile facilities at one location.''

With the board's approval today, county staff will fund the design work through courthouse construction funds and begin the process of searching for alternative funding options for the construction of the juvenile courts.