The movement to Save Dallas City Hall continues to grow.
Originally, a group of developers, several city council members, and many prominent business leaders and organizations suggested that once the public was told that architect I. M. Pei’s Dallas City Hall required more than $100 million in renovations, people would quickly conclude the building was not worth saving.
When there was pushback from the public, the projected maintenance cost rose to $300 million. After additional resistance, estimates of needed repairs were projected to exceed $1 billion.
These photographs show Preservation Dallas leading a tour of Dallas City Hall shortly before the Dallas City Council voted to stop additional public tours of the building.
After a 16-hour meeting in March, the Dallas City Council voted to explore in greater detail the comparative costs of demolishing City Hall and relocating it, or renovating the existing building.
If this discussion is truly about the possibility of building a new Dallas Mavericks arena on the City Hall site, then there should be full transparency about the real costs involved. The public deserves to know whether the proposal would include giving City Hall land to the Dallas Mavericks, or providing hundreds of millions of dollars in tax incentives or other economic subsidies.
This is an important issue for Dallas. It deserves transparency, accurate information, and a thoughtful decision.
While I have watched Dallas City Hall evolve since it was first built, it was fun to join the Preservation Dallas Tour of Dallas City Hall in context of what Dallas City Hall needs and what it offers for the city of Dallas. This image is taken at the front stairs that was originally an escalator.All six floors of Dallas City Hall have an open floor plan with extensive views across downtown Dallas.
This image shows the steep bank of seating that allows Dallas citizens to look down at the City Councilmembers, while the City Councilmembers look up at them.Sarah Crain, the executive director of Preservation Dallas, explains the concept of the Dallas City Council horseshoe looking up at the constituents.
City Councilmember Paul Ridley, who has been very supportive of Dallas City Hall and responsible for helping slow down the process to get more complete information, joined the City Hall Tour led by Sarah Crain also shown in this image.In the public reception lounge outside of the City Council Chambers, one sees a view of downtown Dallas. This view is shared by the Dallas Mayor in his office and the Dallas city workers from their offices.Some of the leading preservationists in Dallas chatted at the end of the Dallas City Hall Tour. They included Preservation Dallas Executive Director Sarah Crain; Marcel Quimby, FAIA; Trevor Brown, Planning & Development Manager – Historic Preservation/Conservation Districts, City of Dallas.Dallas is left wondering if the lights will forever be turned off at City Hall.For almost 50 years, Dallas has looked at this iconic I.M. Pei architect-designed Dallas City Hall with pride.
