BNIM and Lake/Flato’s design for the General Service Administration's competition created a new civic plaza, the counterpoint to El Paso’s commercial San Jacinto plaza. The solution also created a central courtyard, the Naturalization Courtyard, a “court of courts” while simultaneously providing definition to the surrounding streets.

The architecture of the courthouse is rooted in the landscape, forms, and materials of the West Texas region, emphasizing indigenous plants, simple massing, and solidity of construction. It acts as an environmental steward, responding to the unique climatic conditions of the high Texas desert and integrating a host of passive and active sustainable technologies. The design for the new courthouse, which received second place in the competition, balances dignity with decorum.

El Paso, Texas
231,878 square feet
3 acres
Competition Completion: 2002
In collaboration with Lake/Flato

Capturing the tradition of old Texas courthouses, the design’s focus was to enhance the city’s treasury of spaces, and promote public access, inviting the public to participate and observe the rule of law.