The sandstone Montrose County Courthouse on South First Street—built in 1923—has reopened following nearly two years of renovation. County leaders, employees, builders, and residents gathered Monday to celebrate the building’s return to public use.
Former commissioner Roger Rash called the reopening deeply personal, dedicating the project to his late wife, Linda Kelly, who once worked in the courthouse. “My goal was to make sure nobody ever got hurt in this building again,” he said.
Former commissioner Keith Caddy described the courthouse as “the centerpiece of Montrose County,” while current commissioner Sue Hansen credited teamwork that carried the project through COVID delays and design changes.
The $15 million restoration was funded without debt and included a new elevator, rebuilt staircases with snow-melt systems, modern heating and cooling, and 130 new windows. Project superintendent Zane Brown of Stryker & Company said the original building was sound but “tired.” Crews stabilized beams, reinstalled salvaged marble, and laid two miles of copper line for a new variable-refrigerant-flow HVAC system.
Brown noted the original builders completed the courthouse in just 14 months a century ago. “It took us 22 months just to spiff it up,” he said, adding that the renovation should keep the building functional for another hundred years.
