As much fun as going to court can be, it's not necessarily a delight for children -- but that's about to change.

The Contra Costa Superior Court will open its first children's waiting room Monday at the Arnason Justice Center in Pittsburg, serving kids aged 2 to 12. The service will be available for free to any parents doing business in the courthouse, whether they're heading to trial or filing some paperwork, as long as they can pick their kids up in time for the lunch hour, court spokeswoman Mimi Lyster said.

"The courthouse, number one, isn't terribly interesting to children, and number two, it's not always necessarily appropriate for children," Lyster said.

"The true advantage of this, of course, is that children who can't be cared for in another way will have a separate space to hang out and play and be cared for while their parents or guardians are either attending court hearings, or transacting business at the window," Lyster said.

Taking charge of the children who get dropped off will be employees at Kidango, a 30-year-old Bay Area nonprofit, which cares for 2,500 children daily across nine cities in Alameda, Contra Costa and Santa Clara counties.

Kidango will not serve children meals, but "they will have snacks, age-appropriate toys, games, activities, and patient good cheer in abundant supply for young visitors," Lyster said.

It's not clear yet exactly how much this will cost or how many children can be served, Lyster said, since this program is a first for the county. It's being paid for by a fund of about $1 million collected over about five years by taking small percentages of civil filing fees, she added.

Pittsburg is getting first crack at the service because the $65 million Arnason center, which opened in November 2010, was built deliberately to house a space suitable for children, Lyster said.

The only court-going parents to whom the service will not be available, Lyster said, are jurors, who require separate services.
The new room opens will the rest of the courthouse Monday morning and will close daily for lunch at the end of the day at 4:30 p.m.

Contact Sean Maher at 925-779-7189. Follow him on Twitter at @OneSeanMaher.