Design options included restoring interiors of the existing courthouse, converting an old department store into space for support services, or adding a six-story, 163,000-square-foot addition; but each presented their own challenges. It was determined that constructing a new freestanding courthouse on a site in the downtown area best met the county's needs.

For ease of public use, the district court, prothonotary, clerk of the court, clerk of the orphans court/register of wills, and law library are housed on the first two floors. With the majority of the courtrooms, court master hearing rooms, jury assembly, and judicial chambers on the upper floors, access is restricted to those levels.