Downtown St. Petersburg just landed a new legal landmark. The Bernie McCabe Second District Court of Appeal courthouse opened this weekend along Mirror Lake, capped off with a ceremonial ribbon cutting on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. The three-story, roughly $59 million building will finally bring together appellate judges and staff who have been scattered across the region. After the ceremony, officials and local leaders toured the new digs as the court begins operating from its new home.
Move-in and first arguments
Staff actually started settling in well before the fanfare. Chief Judge Matt Lucas said employees began moving into the courthouse in December, and the court held its first oral arguments in January, according to Spectrum Bay News 9. “This is a way for us to recognize all of the partners who have helped us along the way to make this happen,” Lucas said.
What the building includes
The roughly 59,000-square-foot, three-story courthouse includes a single ceremonial courtroom, suites for 15 judges and workspace for about 96 staff, according to The Florida Bar. The facility also features a community room intended for local bar associations and layered security systems designed to keep up with evolving courtroom technology.
High-tech courtroom draws praise
The showpiece is the courtroom itself, outfitted with up-to-date digital systems and sound-absorbing acoustic panels that lawyers are already buzzing about. Attorney Kevin Hayslett called the space “pristine” and “the talk of every appellate judge in the state,” according to Spectrum Bay News 9. Designers also brought over a few oak tables and the gavel from the old Lakeland facility, a small but deliberate nod to the court’s past.
Why St. Pete?
So why plant the flag on Mirror Lake? Officials said the site was picked for its centralized spot in the district and to consolidate operations that had been split between Lakeland and Tampa, according to briefings cited by The Florida Bar. Lawmakers appropriated about $50 million in 2021 and later added roughly $9 million, bringing the project’s budget to about $59 million and clearing the way for construction after the Sebring Building on Mirror Lake was demolished.
Local footprint and next steps
Architects DLR Group and Wannemacher Jensen teamed up with Skanska as general contractor to deliver the project, officials said in construction updates and a company release. The move is expected to end costly leases that had been housing court staff and to give downtown St. Petersburg a permanent base for appellate work and public hearings. Court leaders say the community room will stay open to bar groups and civic events as the building’s day-to-day use ramps up.
