The Sumner County Courthouse has been the cornerstone of our community for more than 200 years. In November 2016, an ad hoc committee was formed by the County Commission to consider removing the Courthouse from its historical location.
Removing the Historic Courthouse from downtown is a bad idea for 3 important reasons:
1. It doesn't make financial sense.
Turning your back on a problem doesn't make it go away. Unless the plan is to demolish the Courthouse or board it up indefinitely, the fixed cost to repair decades of differed maintenance doesn't go away. Therefore spending tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to buy land and build something new would be in addition to, not in replacement of, the investment needed for our Historic Courthouse.
2. It undercuts economic progress.
The Historic Downtown has a tax base of $34.9 Million that generates $483,000 annually in revenue for our government. This doesn’t include the added revenue resulting from the ample sales tax and tourism dollars generated here. Our Historic Downtown is composed of 79% commercial parcels -- which represents one of the most dense and productive tax districts in our community. Simply put, under no circumstance does it make economic sense to evict the economic foundation of our community.
3. It would turn our back on History.
Spanning generations, the Historic Public Square was designed and built—brick by brick—upon the foundation of the legal and economic activity created by our Courthouse. Our history is what makes us unique. Today it is all but impossible to construct a building with the quality and craftsmanship of this historic building. Our Historic Courthouse has rightfully become an icon of Sumner County. Let’s invest in our historical assets that make us unique and continue to draw people to our community.
It's time for our elected officials to end the band-aid repairs and fully modernize our Historic Courthouse for future generations. It's a priceless asset to all of Sumner County. Reinvesting in our Historic Courthouse is the only moral and financially responsible option.
Please join the growing list of community members who are asking our elected officials to Keep the Courthouse!
