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The federal government plans to spend nearly $80 million to build a new federal courthouse in downtown Billings, and the money is all coming from the recently passed stimulus bill.

U.S. Sen. Max Baucus' office announced Tuesday afternoon that the General Services Administration, which is in charge of constructing and operating federal buildings, set aside $79,989,000 to purchase land downtown and to build and run a new federal courthouse. Baucus' office said the $80 million is in addition to the $880 million in federal stimulus money that Montana will receive.

http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles ... sfunds.txt

I'd be happy, except the feds won't share any space with us local government types.

hank scorpio wrote:The federal government plans to spend nearly $80 million to build a new federal courthouse in downtown Billings, and the money is all coming from the recently passed stimulus bill.

U.S. Sen. Max Baucus' office announced Tuesday afternoon that the General Services Administration, which is in charge of constructing and operating federal buildings, set aside $79,989,000 to purchase land downtown and to build and run a new federal courthouse. Baucus' office said the $80 million is in addition to the $880 million in federal stimulus money that Montana will receive.

http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles ... sfunds.txt

I'd be happy, except the feds won't share any space with us local government types.

congratulations to the contractors, builders, tradesmen, restaurant owners in downtown, etc.

What a conundrum for the law-n-order Republicans....will they be considered "soft on crime" if they oppose this obvious pork-barrel-tax-n-spend-earmark project?

They just built the new federal courthouse in Helena not all that long ago. Do they really need a another one that badly?

at last check (admittedly this was 1997 for me)... aren't helena and billings a fair distance apart?

TwinTownBisonFan wrote:at last check (admittedly this was 1997 for me)... aren't helena and billings a fair distance apart?

It was an honest question. And yes, they are a couple hundred miles apart, but in a state that has <1 million people, it just seems a little superfluous to me...

apologies... snarkier than it needed to be...

Good way to get it done if needed. As for stimulus, Billings is one of the least needy small cities in the entire country.

Seems like on of the better uses of stimulus money considering most of it does nothing to stimulate the economy

WTAG wrote:

TwinTownBisonFan wrote:at last check (admittedly this was 1997 for me)... aren't helena and billings a fair distance apart?

It was an honest question. And yes, they are a couple hundred miles apart, but in a state that has <1 million people, it just seems a little superfluous to me...

One reason the GSA wants to replace the Battin building is that it doesn't comply with modern security requirements for federal courthouses.

The building also had to be evacuated twice in the past five years because remodeling work released asbestos contamination that exceeded federal safety guidelines.

Wedgebuster wrote:Good way to get it done if needed. As for stimulus, Billings is one of the least needy small cities in the entire country.

You are correct, but please don't tell people to come looking for jobs here!

hank scorpio wrote:

WTAG wrote:
It was an honest question. And yes, they are a couple hundred miles apart, but in a state that has <1 million people, it just seems a little superfluous to me...

One reason the GSA wants to replace the Battin building is that it doesn't comply with modern security requirements for federal courthouses.

The building also had to be evacuated twice in the past five years because remodeling work released asbestos contamination that exceeded federal safety guidelines.

Okay, that makes a lot more sense.