The Courthouse is a seven story, 252,000 square foot structure designed to house one special proceedings courtroom, four district courtrooms, four magistrate courtrooms, jury assembly and joint-use facilities, as well as associated facilities for the District Clerk, Probation, Pretrial, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Attorney, Federal Public Defender, and the General Services Administration.
The Austin judiciary set the criteria for the defining feature of the courthouse: the introduction of natural light into and views out of the courtrooms, jury deliberation rooms, attorney/ witness conference rooms and all other public spaces.
The site, a square 276 feet x 276 feet, sponsored a highly compact, cubic building form, the stability of which exemplifies the dignity, strength, and coherence of our judicial system. The cubic form produced a building shell efficient to such an extent that it was possible to clad the structure in local Texas limestone, the first choice of the judiciary.
The Austin solution is unique in its volumetric arrangement of the courtrooms. Level four marks the beginning of a rotated and interlocking courtroom distribution scheme. The floor to floor heights of levels four through seven accommodate two levels of office and chamber spaces while courtrooms attain their required ceiling heights by penetrating through the floor directly above.
Articulated wood panels that announce the entrances of the courtrooms and clad the interior of all courtrooms, judges' chambers, and communicating stairs are pecan, the state tree of Texas.
'The Austin Wall' by artist Clifford Ross is a glory of color, light, and image. An integral part of the architecture, the 30 foot x 30 foot 3.5 ton stained and painted glass wall graces the first floor lobby. 'The Austin Wall' is a civic monument, a gift of the United States District Court to the city of Austin.
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