70501. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) The state owns two contiguous parcels of real property consisting of approximately 2.59 acres located in the City of San Diego on two city blocks bounded by West B Street on the north, Union Street on the west, Broadway on the south, and Front Street on the east. Two buildings are located on the real property. One of the buildings is a courthouse building that is used by the Superior Court of California, County of San Diego, as a trial court facility and by the County of San Diego for county offices. Only a portion of the existing courthouse building is located on the state property. The other building is a former county jail facility.
(b) A portion of the existing courthouse building is located on the adjacent county property. The state owns the portion of the existing courthouse building that is located on the county property, but the County of San Diego owns fee title to the county property.
(c) The existing courthouse building will be replaced as part of an overall plan for consolidation and upgrade of the court facilities in the County of San Diego.
(d) The Judicial Council has constructed the new San Diego Central Courthouse on state-owned property in the downtown area of the City of San Diego that is bounded by West B Street on the north, State Street on the west, West C Street on the south, and Union Street on the east. The new San Diego Central Courthouse will fully replace all space occupied by the superior court in the existing courthouse building located on the San Diego property and the county property, and will improve and enhance the safety and efficiency of superior court operations.
(e) The Administrative Director of the Courts may, pursuant to Section 70502, convey the San Diego property to the County of San Diego for the public purpose of promoting public safety by facilitating the construction of the inmate tunnel.
(f) After acquisition of the San Diego property, the County of San Diego intends to perform the demolition project on all or a portion of the San Diego property and the county property, and perform the development project on all or a portion of the San Diego property and the county property.
(Added by Stats. 2017, Ch. 17, Sec. 23. (AB 103) Effective June 27, 2017.)