In September, Commissioner Joe Knight and Gardendale Mayor Stan Hogeland shook hands in front of the closed courthouse annex as they both pledged to reopen the building near the first of the year. 

Work on the Gardendale Courthouse Annex is underway and the location looks to be on schedule to open early in the new year, according to Gardendale Mayor Stan Hogeland and County Commissioner Joe Knight.

The duo announced the reopening of the courthouse earlier this fall, after the annex closed in 2011.

Hogeland said the issue was one of the ones he hears about most often from residents and he and Knight set out to make the reopening a priority over the last year.

The upcoming work at the intersection of Interstate 65 and Interstate 20/59 kicked the courthouse annex reopening into highgear, according to Knight.

When the new commission, including Knight, took office, the various satellite offices around the county were all closed to allow the financially strapped group to restructure and rebound. Now, Knight said the county is back in good shape financially and is looking to once again make things easier for citizens by reopening annexes.

The commission is moving forward with hiring employees and ordering equipment to get the building reopened.

The courthouse, once opened, will allow residents to purchase new car tags, renew tags, renew driver’s licenses and will have a tax assessor and tax collector available to residents during busy times.

The building, located at the intersection of Main Street and Tarrant Road in Gardendale, has been empty since the courthouse closed in 2011.