The Smith County Courthouse in Tyler is pictured on July 17, 2017.

Smith County commissioners on Tuesday discussed a plan for the upcoming 475th District Court, a fifth district court coming to Smith County in 2023 after the passage of a recent law.

The current plan is to move the family court from the 321st District Court (the current one) to the fifth floor of the court annex building, putting the 475th court in the backside of the existing courthouse for the duration of the interim period before a new courthouse is built, Moran said.

The new district court will be coming on Jan. 1, 2023, and the 475th court will primarily be a criminal court, making it important to be able to have trials in a place that is easier to access with prisoners.

Those in the family court agreed to move to the court annex building, even saying it would have some benefits for them. This move will put multiple pieces that go into the family court together, such as being in the same spot as Child Protective Services attorneys.

“CPS attorneys have to go back and forth across the street right now, but with these changes they will be in the same building,” Moran said.

With this move, the goal is to keep things on the fifth floor of the annex as untouched as possible, he said. They don’t want to spend too much money on an interim solution or disturb too much of the current fifth floor.

The county is working with Fitzpatrick Architects on this project. Brandy Ziegler, a leader at Fitzpatrick Architects, presented several examples and plans for the fifth floor of the annex.

The plan is to have about 96 seats in an area of about 2,200 square feet.

Other things shown in the plans are the setup for the courtroom with counsel desks, the elevated platform for the judge, a 14-member jury, along with other areas like those for the bailiff and court reporter.

Some additions and renovations will include two restrooms, redoing the ceiling and lights and replacing the carpet.

There are a lot of things that will need no changes, such as current office space, which will be used for jury deliberation and other things.

“We’re not making this a showcase necessarily, but we want it to be current and pleasant. We also want the technology to be right,” Ziegler said.