Family court building to be museum and hotel in Philadelphia

State will put out bids in June for new family court building

The Juvenile Justice system will be consolidated in Philadelphia and housed in a new building. The state has taken over the project which will convert the old building into a museum.

The new Family Court building will be constructed at 15th and Arch streets which is currently home to a Philadelphia Parking Authority lot. Governor Ed Rendell has authorized the use of $200M set aside for the construction of a building that is urgently needed.

“Becasue every inch of the building at 1801 Vine is overused, it’s reported that battered women hide in fear in stairways in bathrooms and hallways corners to avoid abusive spouses while they wait for their hearings because they don’t have separate waiting rooms and the rooms are too small.”

The state will handle the bid process after there were questions of a conflict of interest. The project will be put to bid next month and a developer picked by the end of summer. The former family court building will be converted to a yet-to-be-named museum and a luxury hotel. That project will also get state financing.