By Lori DeBoer
This article was originally published in the October 2000 edition of Arizona Attorney as “Sandra Day O’Connor Federal Building and Courthouse: A Modern Beacon of Justice.” You can read the whole story by clicking HERE.
When you walk into the great atrium of Phoenix’s new Sandra Day O’Connor Federal Building and United States Courthouse, you feel that you should speak in hushed, reverential tones. The six-story ceiling soars as high as the great cathedrals of Europe. A three-story special proceedings courtroom, also of glass, stands like a sanctuary at the head of the atrium. Though the space is not flanked by grandiose scenes wrought in stained glass, the wide expanse of clear glass— 348,000 square feet—reaches epic proportions. By day, the diffused sun- light shimmers on white walls. By night, the glass-clad building will glow from within, making it a modern beacon of justice.
Awe-inspiring buildings perhaps fell out of fashion for a while, but U.S. District Court Judge Robert Broomfield—charged with ushering the building into being—believes that reverence befits this important public space. “In my view, it should be awe-inspiring,” he says. “This is the symbol of the government of the United States in the city.”
This structure represents a radical departure from traditional notions of public building; it’s more of an
Arcadia than a Parthenon. Instead of an imperious monolith sprouting overgrown pillars and enough steps for a “Rocky” movie, an inviting plaza, with a grove of trees and water features, will welcome the public. Judge Broomfield admits he had the traditional concept in mind when he first approached the idea while part of a committee developing new Government Services Administration standards for these projects in the 1980s. However, more inclusive notions of democracy and the explosion of new technology bring a new awareness of fitting form to function.
“This is a modern city and it should have a modern building,” says Judge Broomfield
