INDIANAPOLIS — The city's biggest construction project in years is just five months shy of opening.
The new criminal justice complex off Southeastern Avenue will house the courts and jail and is already a standout for being green.
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett and others toured the facility Tuesday, celebrating the city's first LEED-certified building, meaning it's energy efficient and a whole lot more.
The building houses the county's new assessment and intervention center, to help people with addiction and mental health challenges. It opened in December, the first building to open on the $566 million Criminal Justice Campus on the city's southeast side.
Crews broke ground on the sprawling site in 2018. The 11-story courthouse, which will house the sheriff's office on the lower level, is nearly done with the adjacent four-story jail not far behind.
"It's on budget, as I understand it, at least as of today and on time," said Hogsett.
The mayor said judges, clerks, sheriff's deputies and others are expected to start moving in to the new facilities before the end of the year, but construction will likely continue.
"People are already talking about Community Justice Campus phase two," said Hogsett.
There's certainly room to grow. Phase two calls for a youth and family services center, a new crime and forensics lab and new coroner's facility."
But the cost and just how much more the city can afford is still to be determined.