The John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse is a federal

courthouse A courthouse or court house is a structure which houses judicial functions for a governmental entity such as a state, region, province, county, prefecture, regency, or similar governmental unit. A courthouse is home to one or more courtrooms, ...

for the

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Maine * District of Massachusetts ...

and the

United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (in case citations, D. Mass.) is the United States district court, federal district court whose Jurisdiction (area), territorial jurisdiction is the Commonwealth (U.S. state), C ...

, located on Fan Pier on the

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

waterfront. Named after Congressman Joe Moakley, the building was completed in 1999 at a cost of $170 million and has won many design awards. The courthouse is served by a stop on Boston's Silver Line. It was also formerly served by MBTA Boat service.

Details

The courthouse serves as headquarters for the

and the

. The building houses two courtrooms for the Court of Appeals and 25 courtrooms for the District Court, as well as 40 judges' chambers, a Circuit law library, the office of a

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

man, offices for the

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

, extensive support facilities for the

United States Marshals The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The Marshals Service serves as the enforcement and security arm of the United States federal judi ...

service and Pre-Trial and Probation services, as well as a day-care facility. The building, clad in water-struck brick with granite trim, has ten floors above grade and one below. It was the first major project to be awarded as part of the United States Court Design Guidelines and incorporates

General Services Administration The General Services Administration (GSA) is an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the United States government established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. G ...

's goals for imparting dignity and social significance, while creating modern and innovative justice architecture. Associate Justice

Stephen Breyer Stephen Gerald Breyer ( ; born August 15, 1938) is an American lawyer and retired jurist who served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1994 until his retirement in 2022. He was nominated by President Bill Clinton, and r ...

, who was serving as Chief Judge of the First Circuit at the time, helped oversee the design and construction of the building and credits the project for sparking his interest in architecture. Public access to the courtrooms is provided through a sequence of spaces — Entrance Hall, Rotunda, Great Hall, and Galleries. Twenty-one large-scale paintings were commissioned from Ellsworth Kelly and are installed in these areas. The courtrooms themselves are distinguished by a motif of large arches defined by wood moldings and stenciled ornament. The sub-basement houses an

ice storage air conditioning Ice storage air conditioning is the process of using ice for thermal energy storage. The process can reduce energy used for cooling during times of Peak_demand, peak electrical demand. Alternative power sources such as solar can also use the tec ...

system which uses half-price electricity at night to freeze water, which is then used to cool the courthouse during hot days. This saves an estimated $1.5 million per year, and helps load-balance the regional electricity grid.What Moakley Courthouse's Old-School Cooling System Could Teach Us About Energy Storage
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Design team

* Design Architect – Henry N. Cobb and Ian Bader of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, New York * Interior Design – Pei Cobb Freed & Partners,

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

* Executive Architect – Jung Brannen Associates,

* Structural Engineer – LeMessurier Consultants,

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

General Contractor A contractor (North American English) or builder (British English), is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and the communication of information to all involved parties throughout the c ...

– Clark Construction Group, Inc * Mechanical/Electrical Engineer – Cosentini Associates LLP, New York City * Courts Design Consultant – Gruzen Samton, New York City * Landscape Architect –

OLIN Olin may refer to: People Organizations * OLIN, American landscape architecture firm * Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis * Olin College, an undergraduate engineering college in Massachusetts * Olin Corporation, a chem ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, and Carol R. Johnson & Associates, Cambridge, Massachusetts * Lighting Designer - Lam Partners Inc,

Design awards

* 2000

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

: Presidential Design Awards: Federal Design Achievement * 1999

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

: District of Columbia Chapter: Award of Merit * 1999 Dupont Benedictus Award for Innovation in Architectural Laminated glass * 1999 Saflex Safe & Sound Award: First Annual Award for the Use of Laminated Glass in Design * 1997

/ Brick Institute of America: Brick in Architecture Award * 1997

: Honor Award for Design

References

External links

Moakley Courthouse brochure
* * {{Authority control Courthouses in Boston Federal courthouses in the United States Boston Harbor Landmarks in Financial District, Boston Government buildings completed in 1999 1990s architecture in the United States Jung Brannen buildings 1999 establishments in Massachusetts United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts

Details

Design team

Design awards

See also

References

External links