Rockwood says bring on the judges

Most residents welcome news of revived courthouse proposal

By Mara Stine

The Gresham Outlook, Sep 25, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (3 Reader comments)

Jim Clark / The Outlook

Linda Panza, who with her husband, Joe, has owned and operated Giuseppe’s Italian restaurant in Rockwood for 23 years, is thrilled that county leaders are again considering the construction of a courthouse in Rockwood. "We need this," she said. "It boosts business, it boosts morale. It boosts everything."

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News that Multnomah County is again considering building Gresham’s new courthouse in the Rockwood area caught many residents off guard.

But it’s a pleasant surprise for most of them.

Linda Panza, who with her husband Joe has owned and operated Giuseppe’s Italian restaurant in Rockwood for 23 years, is thrilled Multnomah County is again considering construction of a courthouse just south of Stark Street off 185th Avenue.

“It needs to be here,” she said. “And it needs to get done.”

On Tuesday, Sept. 22, Multnomah County Chairman Ted Wheeler and Commissioner Diane McKeel voiced support for a freshly unveiled proposal to build a $21 million courthouse in Rockwood.

Next week, the five-member board of commissioners will vote on whether to proceed with the project. If approved, the courthouse will replace Gresham’s dilapidated single courtroom facility on Powell Boulevard.

Joe Panza said he was “very, very surprised” to hear the news.

“I didn’t think it was ever going to happen,” said the longtime supporter of a Rockwood courthouse/justice center. “I thought it was done. I had zero faith. So I’m really applauding Ted Wheeler for bringing it back. It’s a good investment in the infrastructure of Rockwood.”

Gresham’s urban renewal officials have plans for a mixed-use development on property the city owns just a stone’s throw from the proposed courthouse site.

“Those dreams won’t become reality until people are interested and attracted to invest in the area,” Joe Panza said.

A courthouse will make the urban renewal agency’s property “a lot more palatable and attractive then it is now,” Panza added.

His wife Linda also is happy that a courthouse might be coming to Rockwood.

“We need this,” she said. “It boosts business. It boosts morale. It boosts everything. … Rockwood is a good area. There are so many good people, good families here. It just needs some help.”

Not everyone is as enthusiastic.

Local high school student and Rockwood resident Eddie Hillman is against the idea of Multnomah County building a courthouse just south of 185th and Stark Street.

“This area is already bad. They don't need a courthouse,” said the senior at Reynolds High School. “That would just bring more trouble.”

Then, again, “it would make it more convenient for the people around here who get into trouble,” he said.

Catherine Nicewood, vice president of the Rockwood Neighborhood Association, disagrees. The courthouse won’t draw hardcore criminals because the courthouse will only handle misdemeanors and traffic violations.

If anything, she sees it as a local amenity. Instead of traveling to downtown Portland for court business, residents could take care of it closer to home.

“I think it’s a good idea,” she said. “A lot of people I talk to are concerned with the crime in Rockwood. They would feel safer if there was some sort of court facility here. And Rockwood residents have been wanting this for a long time.”

Gresham resident Winni Ryman appreciates the convenience a local courthouse would be to nearby families.

“It totally makes sense to have it here,” she said while getting off a MAX train at the Rockwood Town Center with her bicycle to ride home from work.

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