ALFRED — Got land? About, say, seven buildable acres? If so, the state court system wants to know about it.

The Maine Judicial Branch is looking for land to build a new, consolidated $65 million courthouse in York County.

Among the criteria is that the land has reasonable access to a major road, is served by public utilities, has proper zoning, and can accommodate a building footprint of at least 30,000 square feet and parking for as many as 300 vehicles, according to Mary Ann Lynch, spokeswoman for the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Landowners who would like their properties to be considered should submit their information by Aug. 10.

A new court building is designed to consolidate the three district courts in Biddeford, Springvale and York, and the York County Superior Court, which sits at the county-owned York County Court House in Alfred. The latter was built in 1806, expanded in 1854, and rebuilt in 1934 after a fire.

Three properties – two in Wells and county-owned land at the site of York County Jail, off Route 4 in Alfred – were submitted as possible sites earlier this year. Lynch said that while the properties haven’t been rejected, the judicial branch wants to broaden its options.

“Just to be clear, publishing a new request is not meant to suggest that the previously mentioned parcels won’t work,” said Lynch in an email. “They may very well work.

“What we are trying to do now is make sure we have cast as wide a net as possible to bring to the Site Selection Commission suitable sites for their consideration. We are looking for more specific information now about the potential properties, including price.”

The Maine Judicial Branch put out an informal request for information about land earlier this year, prior to passage of legislation funding the project. A request for proposals was put out with a July 22 deadline, but Lynch said the response was modest, so the Administrative Office of the Courts has decided to extend the deadline.

Lack of capacity at York County courts meant a child sexual assault case took 18 months to make its way through the system, York County District Attorney Kathryn Slattery told the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee in February during hearings on the bill which funds the new court project.

A court feasibility report shows it takes an average of 253 days for a case to make its way through York County Superior Court, while in Cumberland County, which has the same number of cases annually, it takes less than half that number – 107 days.

Sen. Linda Valentino, D-Saco, who sponsored the bill that funds the new York County court project as well as projects in Waldo and Oxford counties, said the Alfred court building has one large courtroom and one small room that places victims and defendants in far too close proximity.

A feasibility report issued in February noted that the York County Court House is overcrowded, poses security risks, has courtrooms unequipped for technology, has no conference rooms, and a host of other issues.

The septic and electrical systems at the wood-framed York District Court need upgrades, and the building needs a new roof, while Biddeford District Court has no jury trial-capable rooms, insufficient space for clerks and files.

Springvale District Court, built in 2002 and the newest of the four buildings, has no jury-capable courtrooms, a main lobby that is too small for the volume of people, and no cell phone reception, among other deficiencies.

A site selection commission will host its inaugural meeting at 3 p.m. Aug. 1 at York County Court House. The commission is required to make its selection by the first of the year; Lynch said the Administrative Office of the Courts hopes to have a decision by November.

For information on land requirements, go to: courts. maine.gov/news_ reference/ news/York_ County_ Land. html.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.