Renovating the Los Angeles County Hall of Justice

The facade of the County Hall of Justice, right, is dark and dirty compared with that of Los Angeles City Hall, left. The material of both buildings is Sierra white granite, quarried near Fresno. The exterior of the Hall of Justice will soon be cleaned and restored. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

Feb. 9, 2013 5:37 PM PT

Crews are working on a $234-million renovation of the historic L.A. County Hall of Justice in downtown Los Angeles. The building has been shuttered since the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Employees from the Sheriff’s Department and the district attorney’s office are expected to move back into the building after the repairs are completed in late 2014.
Read more: A dirty job at L.A. County’s Hall of Justice

Renovating the L.A. County Hall of Justice

Dirty Sierra white granite on the exterior of the L.A. County Hall of Justice. The hall was built in 1925, and renovations will include extensive cleaning of the exterior as well as a seismic retrofit. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

An ornate corbel of Sierra white granite on the exterior of the L.A. County Hall of Justice shows a lot of grime. The building will be bead-blasted to clean the granite. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

The terrazzo floors and historic iron-and-brass stairs are covered in the Hall of Justice’s open lobby, or loggia. The building has been closed since the 1994 Northridge earthquake and is undergoing a complete renovation and retrofit. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

First-floor building plans sit out for reference. Heavily damaged in 1994, the interior of the building has been cleared of debris and hazardous materials and is being renovated. When the work is done, the building will be shared by the Sheriff’s Department and the district attorney’s office. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

Graffiti is scratched into the paint of a steel panel inside the jail at the L.A. County Hall of Justice. The jail cells, which used to be on the upper floors, have been moved to the first floor. One of the jail cells that temporarily housed Charles Manson will be part of a new interpretative display at the Hall of Justice. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

James Kearns, L.A. County Department of Public Works assistant deputy director, stands inside a jail cell that once temporarily housed Charles Manson at the Hall of Justice. It will become part of an interpretive display when the building reopens. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

A block of jail cells at the Hall of Justice. The jail was moved to the first floor from the upper floors. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

A construction worker walks on the grounds of the L.A. County Hall of Justice. The Sierra white granite of the exterior is dirty with the grime of 88 years and will soon undergo bead-blasting to clean it. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)