Nesbett Courthouse
![Black and white diagram with A- F reference names at top with two-way arrows pointing to unbraced sections of building frame.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/full_width/public/media/images/flexiblebays.png?itok=kgbWnaHe)
Detailed Description
This simplified diagram of the Nesbett Courthouse shows how the building, completed in 1996, is meant to respond to ground movement that might occur below and beside it during an earthquake. Sections of the frame, described as flexible bays, are designed to fail in a controlled way so that the foundation matches the new ground surface without the building collapsing completely. The design is meant to accommodate vertical movement up to four feet and side-to-side movement of nearly three feet. The Nesbett Courthouse is a 6-foot building designed accordingly to the 1991 Uniformed Building Code. The site lies within Anchorage Hazard Zone 4, Which means it has a "high' potential for earthquake-induced ground failure.
Sources/Usage
Public Domain.
UAA/APU Consortium Library: Anchorage courthouse expansion, Alaska Court System, State of Alaska: structural design narrative prepared for McCool-McDonald of Alaska, Inc., Architects; prepared by Coffman Engineers, Inc. call number JK1651.A4 A532 1987; UAA/APU Consortium, Alaskana Reference, Reference Book