City of West Memphis Municipal Complex

Long overdue for new municipal buildings, West Memphis, AR needed to explore feasible options given the financial burden that such a project places on a town of its size. The community of about 24,400 sits across the Mississippi River from Memphis, TN. With deteriorating facilities, West Memphis has been in dire need of updates to better serve the public.

The old courthouse, originally built in 1938 through the Public Works Administration (PWA), features additions added through the years to keep up with growth, including an area that served as a backup dispatch station for the police department. The two holding cells were in poor condition and security features, like the metal detector, were run-down.

Similarly, the facilities for the West Memphis Fire Department have not been updated at the same pace as the department’s expansion – it began as a volunteer organization in 1929 and now boasts nearly 70 fully paid members.

In PROCEDEO’s role overseeing the project, we coordinated between the stakeholders –from city officials to community members, the firm financing the project, and our construction partners. Given the financial constraints, the project required leveraging private resources and, on our end, extensive planning to stay within budget.

To keep the project within budget, PROCEDEO sought designs and materials that were affordable while still looking refined. This required utilizing interesting materials in clever ways.

We extended that same level of budget consideration to the general contractor and other partners to meet our high expectations while staying within strict financial boundaries. We ensured that our partners could meet deadlines within the 12-month timelines for each building through rigorous planning to reduce unexpected costs.

We also helped foster and implement public input and ensure that the approach dovetailed with the city’s revitalization efforts known as the GROW West Memphis 2040 initiative. We set out to ensure that these three buildings supported their vision of a brighter tomorrow.

In order to unlock its full potential, the city first needed a solid foundation. Through rigorous strategy and planning with a constant eye on budget, PROCEDEO ensured that West Memphis would get the facilities they need without a greater financial burden than necessary.

That meant that, for the most part, buildings made of affordable concrete blocks with a nice brick veneer. We utilized deep red brick for the fire stations to help them stand out and red, white, and woodgrain metal panels to elevate the facade further.

The courthouse, which contains a courtroom and multiple chambers for increased caseload, is wrapped in storefront glass. One of the unique, yet low cost, features is a discreet exit in the judge’s office that allows the judge to duck out without hassle or quickly leave the premises in case of emergency. This thoughtful approach to imagining and constructing these buildings paves the way for West Memphis’ strategic growth.