Pulaski County Courthouse cuts ribbon on new era

September 7, 1895, was surely a day of celebration when the Pulaski County Board of Commissioners officially took custody of the current Pulaski County Courthouse property from the architects and builders. Now, 130 years later, the Pulaski County community is celebrating once again with the courthouse's renovated return. A ribbon cutting ceremony was held on the north, main stairs of the county courthouse on Sept. 5 to celebrate and commemorate those who helped see the renovations through. Pulaski County Community Development Commission (CDC) Executive Director Nathan Origer, who served as the project lead, delivered the opening remarks. Origer acknowledged that the courthouse has produced many challenges for the county over the past decade or so and has a speckled past as far as getting county approval for renovations. He said 2019 was the year that conversations really gained traction, leading us to where we are today. In August of 2019, three options had been presented to the public. The first was to keep circuit court in the courthouse and renovate it; the second option was to move circuit court to a justice center addition and repurpose the open space of the former circuit courtroom at the courthouse; and the third option was similar to the 2018 option that included demolishing the courthouse and building a more substantial addition onto the justice center. A study funded by Indiana Landmarks helped prove a case for rehabilitation instead of demolition, and eventually both the county council and the commissioners agreed to move forward with renovations. A smaller addition to the justice center was agreed upon and broke ground in 2021 and wrapped a year later. The processes for the courthouse project started to gain momentum around 2023. The Director of the Northern Indiana Office of Indiana Landmarks Todd Zeiger stated that he had gotten involved with the courthouse project very early on, around 11 years ago.