Chief Superior Court Judge Michael Karpf criticized the county manager's handling of funds for the Chatham County courthouse renovations on Tuesday morning.
Karpf said he was notified at the "eleventh hour" that a plan to construct additional courtrooms would not move forward as planned due to a lack of funds.
Instead, more than $13 million was spent on acquiring and renovating a new government building around the corner on Oglethorpe Avenue, later named after past Commission Chairman Pete Liakakis, Karpf said.
Adminsitrative offices in the courthouse are set to move to the new building to make room for the new courtrooms. Since the renovations cannot begin, Karpf said the Liakakis building has no point. He asked county commissioners during the budget workshop to move the departments back into the courthouse and sell the building.
Those funds could then be used to construct a new trial building next to the courthose, another part of the courthouse improvement plan.
Commission Chairman Al Scott said he appreciated Karpf's frustration, but did not appreciate his criticism being targeted at County Manager Russ Abolt. Scott, who became chairman in January, said Abolt is at the direction of the county commission.
Scott said he is willing to meet with Karpf and the other judges to see what they can do to get the courtrooms constructed, although he does not support Karpf's request to sell the Liakakis building.