Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Work crews on Friday lifted the last structural beam to the top of the new Multnomah County Central Courthouse, now towering 325 feet over the downtown Hawthorne Bridgehead.

The new courthouse, at 1220 S.W. First Ave., is still a year and a half from its expected spring 2020 opening. Its frame remains mostly open to the elements, and there's months of interior and exterior finish work ahead.

One key design element is done, however -- the cast concrete columns, imprinted with a wood grain pattern, that line the three-story lobby.

More: Renderings of the new Multnomah County Central Courthouse

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

"The tall columns will signal to our community that they are entering an important place, the place where justice is served," Multnomah County Chairwoman Deborah Kafoury said at the "topping off" ceremony.

Judge Nan Waller, the former presiding judge for Multnomah County Circuit Court who oversaw the courthouse project, said the county knew for years that it needed a new courthouse to replace the outdated and overcrowded existing one.

"But the path to getting here was elusive," Waller said, due to the expense. The $325 million courthouse will be paid for in part with $125 million in state money, the last $92 million of which was approved by the Legislature in 2017. The rest will be paid by the county.

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

The courthouse will include 44 courtrooms, space for free child-care service for low-income families with court business and a coffee stand run by the Oregon Commission for the Blind.

It's being built next to the 1909 Jefferson Station building, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and began life as an electrical substation.

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

The current downtown courthouse, meanwhile, is set to be sold for $28 million to Portland-based NBP Capital, a development firm that said it plans to preserve the century-old building. It had been marketed to prospective buyers as an office or hotel redevelopment opportunity.

The county deemed a renovation and seismic upgrade of the existing courthouse too expensive, and it rejected another potential downtown site in favor of the bridgehead site the county already owned.

-- Elliot Njus

enjus@oregonian.com

503-294-5034

@enjus

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury speaks during the "topping out" ceremony.

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Hoffman Construction Chairman and CEO Wayne Drinkward speaks during the "topping out" ceremony.

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

County Circuit Court Judge Nan Waller speaks during the "topping out" ceremony.

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

County Circuit Court Judge Nan Waller speaks during the "topping out" ceremony.

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

County Circuit Court Judge Nan Waller speaks during the "topping out" ceremony.

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury speaks during the "topping out" ceremony.

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury speaks during the "topping out" ceremony.

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Don't Edit

Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive