The Newcastle Courthouse development is a major court complex planned for the Newcastle CBD and is expected to be completed in late 2014 at an estimated cost of $94 million.

Newcastle is one of the busiest court complexes in Australia and the third largest in NSW outside of Sydney. The new Newcastle Courthouse development will replace the existing court facilities with a modern and functional facility to meet Newcastle’s growing Local, District and Supreme court needs. The new courthouse will provide 10 courts and 2 tribunal rooms in a proposed 11,000 sqm, seven-storey building.

Check this page regularly for project updates. The Project Director, Alan Griffith, can be contacted via email: alan_griffith@agd.nsw.gov.au or ph: 02 8688 7585.

What's next	Commencement of Mine Rectification Works Following demolition of the New Fred Ash Building and site clearance, mine rectification works are planned to commence in late March 2012.
17/02/2012	Public comment on the project invited The City of Newcastle placed the Development Application for the main building works on exhibition for public comment. The submission period ends on 2 March 2012.
14/02/2012	DA submitted for the main building works [View Image] A Development Application was submitted to The City of Newcastle to enable the main Courthouse building to be constructed. The Development Application included drawings representing approximately the 30% design stage. Several graphical images of the proposed development were provided to provide an interpretation of the final building and how it contributes to the cityscape.
13/02/2012	City Plan Services appointed as BCA Consultant and Principal Certifying Authority City Plan Services, based in Sydney and Newcastle, were awarded the contract to provide Building Code of Australia consultancy services and as the Principal Certifying Authority for the project.
01/2012	Demolition commenced of the New Fred Ash building [View Image] The City of Newcastle commenced demolition of the New Fred Ash Building to enable the new Courthouse to be constructed.
20/12/2011	Tenders called for Mine Rectification Works Tenders were called for mine rectification works to be undertaken beneath the site.
13/12/2011	DA submitted for the Mine Rectification Works Due to the presence of coal mine workings beneath the Burwood Wedge site and the potential risk of mine subsidence, stabilisation works known as "grouting" are required to be undertaken to the mine workings to reinforce the site and its surrounds. A Development Application was submitted to The City of Newcastle to enable mine rectification works beneath the site to commence.
20/09/2011	Aquenta Consulting appointed as project Cost Planners Aquenta Consulting, based in Sydney, were appointed a the project quantity surveyors. Aquenta Consulting brings cost planning experience from a number of recent court projects to the Newcastle Development.
29/08/2011	Site Geotechnical Survey Douglas Partners, as the project geotechnical engineers, commenced an on-site assessment of the likely mine working rectification requirements. The work involved drilling to the various coal seams and survey by seismic and photo methods.
27/07/2011	Cox Richardson Architects & Planners to lead the design team Cox Richardson Architects & Planners has been awarded the Principal Design Consultant role for the Newcastle Courthouse Development. Cox Richardson is one of the largest architectural practices in Australia and have design experience on a range of public buildings and courthouses around Australia. The appointment will enable detailed design work to commence.
16/06/2011	Project management role awarded The Newcastle-based APP Corporation has been awarded the project management role for the Newcastle Courthouse development. APP's experience with court facilities combined with their local knowledge and commitment to the city’s revitalisation will provide a benefit to one of the Department's major courthouse redevelopment projects.
05/05/2011	Tenders called for principal design consultant Tenders were called to design the new Newcastle courthouse complex. Tenderers were selected from the Department of Finance and Services pre-qualified architects’ panel. Appointment of a principal design consultant is expected in late June 2011.
11/04/2011	Tenders called for Project Management Services Tenders were called to project manage the design and construction of the new Newcastle courthouse complex. Tenderers were selected from the Department of Finance and Services pre-qualified project managers panel. Appointment of a project manager is expected in May 2011.
24/03/2011	Contracts exchanged for land sale Contracts were exchanged with the City of Newcastle to enable the land acquisition to proceed. The site, commonly referred to as the ‘Burwood Wedge’, is located on the corner of Hunter and Burwood Streets in the Newcastle CBD. The site is adjacent to the Town Hall and is in the Civic Precinct as defined in the City of Newcastle’s Hunter Street Revitalisation Master Plan.
15/02/2011	City of Newcastle agrees to sell land for new courthouse At a council meeting in February 2011, the City of Newcastle agreed to the proposed sale to the State Property Authority, which will enable planning to continue for the new courthouse development. This decision will allow final due diligence assessments and negotiations to be completed leading to the exchange of contracts.
23/11/2010	State Property Authority appointed to buy land site for new courthouse The State Property Authority has been engaged to manage the acquisition of land for the new courthouse. State Property Authority will own the land on behalf of the Department of Attorney General and Justice who will develop the site and operate the new courthouse complex.
06/09/2010	Project Director appointed to progress courthouse Alan Griffith has been appointed as Project Director working with the Department of Attorney General and Justice’s Asset Management Branch. Alan’s role will be to progress the new Newcastle Courthouse project and to ensure that the project meets expectations and is delivered within the defined time, cost, scope and quality parameters.
13/05/2010	State Budget approval for replacement of Newcastle Courthouse Budget Committee approved the replacement of the ageing Newcastle Courthouse as part of the 2010/11 State budget at a cost of $94 million. The current court facilities are housed in 4 buildings over 2 sites in Church and Bolton Streets, Newcastle.
09/05/2009	Newcastle Courthouse redevelopment business case and Gateway Review completed The business case for the new courthouse along with the Gateway Review were successfully completed in May 2009. The Gateway Review is part of the State Government’s major infrastructure project development process and provided an independent assessment on the project against a range of specific criteria. The peer review involved interviews with key project stakeholders and the examination of key project documents such as the business case. The Gateway Review team endorsed the project.