- Orange County Government Center
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Orange County Government Center 
South viewGeneral information Architectural style Brutalist Town or city Goshen, NY Country USA Coordinates 41°24′22″N 74°19′06″W / 41.40611°N 74.31833°W Completed 1967 Design and construction Client Orange County Architect Paul Rudolph The Orange County Government Center, located on Main Street (NY 207) in Goshen, New York, is as its name suggests the main office of the government of Orange County. It houses most county officials' offices and meetings of the county legislature. The records of Orange County Court and all deeds and mortgages filed in the county are kept there as well. An office of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles is located on the first floor. It was designed by noted architect and dean of the Yale School of Architecture Paul Rudolph in 1963 and built in 1967.
A courtyard divides the portion of the building hosting the executive and legislative branches from the half that hosted County Court until the late 1990s, when the state's Court Facilities Capital Review Board deemed the old courthouse unfit for use. A new addition was built to its north to house the courts and opened in the early 2000s, at considerable cost and frequent delay.
Courtyard between the two buildings.
Its architecture has been subject to some criticism. At the time of its construction it was called a "monstrosity".[1] "If I took a poll in town, it would be demolished tomorrow," County Executive Edward Diana said in 2010.[2] That year he proposed a replacement building, but the county legislature balked at the $114 million cost during difficult economic times.[1]
The building has had problems over its life. It leaked severely enough after a heavy storm in 1970 that the Finance Department had to stretch a tarpaulin across the ceiling.[1] Today many of its 87 roofs leak[2] and it has also become expensive to heat.
DMV office in interior atrium.So great are these problems, that when Diana considered demolishing it to build a new one in early 2004 the objections raised were purely financial. However, the costs of doing so are prohibitive enough that the idea has been dropped. At the same time it is uncertain whether it would be feasible to repair the building, and demolition is still the strongest possibility.[2]
There have been some architects who have urged the building's preservation, however, pointing to its historic value, Rudolph's stature as an architect, and the imaginative use of space within the building. The Paul Rudolph Foundation has been working to preserve both it and Chorley School in nearby Middletown, which has been slated for demolition. Some even consider it beautiful.[1] New York's State Historic Preservation Office has found it eligible for listing on the state and National Registers of Historic Places,[3] and an online campaign has begun to save it for both historic and economic reasons.[4]
In 2011, flood damage from Hurricane Irene closed the building for over a week. Mold had been growing in spaces in some rooms, including the grand jury room, and there were concerns it might become unsafe for use by those with respiratory problems. The day after it reopened, the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee deluged the area, and it was closed again until further notice.[5] The following week, Diana pressed county legislators to make a decision soon on whether to renovate the building or restore it.[6]
References
- ^ a b c d McKenna, Chris (October 10, 2010). "Architect's legacy in Goshen's Orange County Government Center has its defenders". Times-Herald Record (Middletown, NY: News Corporation). http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20101010/NEWS/10100331/-1/NEWS14. Retrieved October 13, 2010.
- ^ a b c Bernstein, Fred A.; March 23, 2007; "A Road Trip Back to The Future"; The New York Times; retrieved March 23, 2007,
- ^ LaFrank, Kathleen; Determination of Eligibility for Orange County Government CenterPDF; August 23, 2011; retrieved September 16, 2011}}
- ^ "Save Orange County Government Center". http://www.saveocgc.org/TOC/Home.html. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
- ^ McKenna, Chris (September 9, 2011). "Orange County Government Center closed indefinitely". Times-Herald Record. http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110909/NEWS/109090356. Retrieved September 9, 2011.
- ^ "Diana pushes legislators to OK new building". Times-Herald Record. September 16, 2011. http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110916/NEWS/109160389. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
External links
- Save OCGC home page
Goshen, New York Municipalities 
Education Historic buildings
and sitesOther Black Dirt Region • Orange County Government Center Categories:- Buildings and structures completed in 1967
- Brutalist architecture in the United States
- Buildings and structures in Orange County, New York
- Goshen, New York
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