The last ceremonial beam for the top level of the new Pima County Downtown Courts Complex in Tucson, Ariz., was hoisted 140 feet into the air and put into place at a “topping off” ceremony on Monday. The event celebrated the completion of the foundation and framework for the seven-story building and marked a major milestone in the project. Sundt‘s $48.2 million contract is for the 290,000-square-foot building’s core and shell.
The beam was signed by the officials in attendance and the approximately 75 construction workers assigned to the project. Speakers at the event included Richard Elías, Pima County Board of Supervisors, District 5; the Honorable John S. Leonardo, United States Attorney for the District of Arizona; the Honorable Sarah R. Simmons, Presiding Judge, Pima County Superior Court; the Honorable Keith Bee, Presiding Judge, Pima County Justice Court; and Ramón Valadez, Chairman, Pima County Board of Supervisors, District 2.
Located on a four-acre parcel, the new criminal justice facility will address pressing court needs. It is being built in just 81 weeks and contains 5.6 million pounds of steel and 1,020 tons of reinforcing concrete rebar. Construction of the building shell will be complete this August.
Last summer, Sundt’s concrete team poured 7,500 cubic yards of concrete in two overnight operations to create the building’s five-foot-thick mat slab foundation – two of the largest concrete pours in Tucson’s history.