FRANKFORT, Ky., Dec. 12, 2025 – The public and media are invited to a groundbreaking ceremony for the planned Clinton County Judicial Center at 2 p.m. CST Tuesday, Dec. 16. The event will take place at the construction site at 302 N. Cross St. in Albany.
The Kentucky General Assembly authorized the Clinton County project in 2020. The new two-story Clinton County Judicial Center will house all court services in Clinton County. The 31,177 square-foot building is set to be completed in 2028.
New judicial centers improve upon older, inadequate facilities, greatly enhancing the delivery of court services. The Clinton County Judicial Center will support the latest data, computer, video and networking technology. The facility will also provide the highest level of Kentucky court security through a single-point entry with magnetometers and security personnel.
Chief Justice of the Commonwealth Debra Hembree Lambert said she appreciates the legislators and county officials who support the improvements for Clinton County.
“More than 800,000 cases work their way through the courts each year, making judicial centers busy and important facilities essential to their communities,” she said. “These modern structures are created to be safe and efficient for everyone who passes through their doors.”
Sherman Carter Barnhart Architects designed the building. Codell Construction is the construction manager for the project, and Compass Municipal Advisors is the financial agent.
Chief Justice Lambert and Clinton County Judge-Executive Ricky L. Craig will be among the speakers at the ceremony. Other state and local officials are expected to attend.
Process for Constructing Judicial Facilities
The Administrative Office of the Courts oversees the construction and maintenance of Kentucky court facilities in accordance with House Bill 734, which was passed by the 2000 General Assembly. As a result of this legislation, the AOC created a process to fairly and objectively determine court facility needs.
Once funding is authorized, the AOC Division of Capital Construction works with local communities to assemble a project development board. This board ensures that county and court officials have input on all aspects of the project, including decisions on the site, architect and contractor.
The PDB is composed of the county judge-executive, a fiscal court representative, the chief circuit judge, the chief district judge, the circuit court clerk, a citizen-at-large and a Kentucky Bar Association designee.
As the operations arm for the state court system, the AOC in Frankfort supports the activities of nearly 3,300 court system employees and 412 elected justices, judges and circuit court clerks. The AOC also executes the Judicial Branch budget.
(Jamie Neal, Communications Specialist – Administrative Office of the Courts)