Historical and Architectural Significance of Old City Hall
High on the hill overlooking Commencement Bay sits Old City Hall, a historical landmark for this lovable gritty city we call Tacoma. Built by San Francisco architects, Edward Hatherton and Colin McIntosh, in 1893 during a depression era, this Italian-esque brick structure served as a city government building until 1957.
The origins of the unique yellow/brown bricks have plenty of speculation and stories behind them, however the most likely being that they arrived on a ship called the Schooner Hayes from San Francisco, with the main architect Edward Hatherton having connections to San Francisco and serving as the City’s architect for ten years in the 1880s (check out our blog Mystery and History of OCH Bricks for a more in-depth outline of the elusive history of the bricks) . The structure is built on foundation walls made of Wilkeson sandstone, sourced from Wilkeson, Washington. These walls are eight feet thick at the base and taper to six feet thick at street level.
Above the 5th floor stands a rooftop solarium overlooking the clock tower and the skyline of Tacoma. Once home to the most delicious restaurant, Mama Lemoynes, this magical space will now be leased as an event venue, open for weddings, galas, cocktail parties, and more!
The ornate 80,000 square-foot building stands at 187 feet and five stories tall and used to house the Tacoma Public Library, the Tacoma city government, attorneys, and city jail. This iconic landmark also used to be home to a two-and-a-half-ton Westminster chime-clock, donated by Mr. and Mrs Hugh Wallace in 1904. The bell was declared seismically unsafe in 2023 and was removed from the structure to comply with safety standards. However, it will be replaced with the original sheet music of the bells, which will be used to digitally recreate their chime with stunning accuracy.
During 1957, the Tacoma City Government officially vacated Old City Hall and left it to disrepair. This historical landmark sat vacant, neglected, and deteriorating, resulting in the city deciding to tear down the beautiful building. City planners, with millions at their disposal, envisioned tearing down the period buildings of Downtown Tacoma and replacing them with a newly developed shopping mall, aiming to redirect traffic away from a fading downtown. It wasn’t until the Delphinium Gardening Club intervened in 1962 that the iconic structure was saved from destruction!
In 1974, Old City Hall was added to the National Registry of Historic Places. This registry was established under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and overseen by the National Park Service. This deemed Old City Hall as a Historic building worthy of preservation. Including historic properties on the National Register encourages their preservation and highlights their significance as key elements of our shared histories.
Throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s OCH came back to life! Forty local businesses occupied the walls of this historic landmark, revitalizing the building with business, food, life, and culture. Some would say it even housed some of the best restaurants in downtown Tacoma. Life went on…until the 2008 financial crisis. The 2008 financial crisis sent many businesses under and the unemployment rate skyrocketing, resulting in OCH being left vacant once again.
The City of Tacoma selected to move forward with Surge Tacoma’s proposal with visions to revive the abandoned Old City Hall, envisioning floors of restaurants, retail, residential, and office spaces for lease in Tacoma. Surge Tacoma has been hard at work with preservation work, remodeling, and installing seismic reinforcements in this 130-year-old structure.
Hoping to add to the community, Old City hall will now provide space for some of the best places to eat in Tacoma, retail, office spaces, and residential Tacoma apartments. With plans to open in 2025, this Historical Landmark is destined to bring together a beautiful community once and for all!
References:
https://www.oldcityhalltacoma.com/history
https://cms.cityoftacoma.org/planning/historic-preservation/districts/old-city-hall-district.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_City_Hall_(Tacoma,_Washington)
https://tacomahistory.live/2018/03/20/home-grown-obstructionists/
https://www.historylink.org/file/5055
https://www.cityoftacoma.org/in_the_news_archive/surge_tacoma_selected_to_enter_negotiations_with_t
https://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/WA-01-053-0052
https://gritcitymag.com/2018/05/tower-bells-to-jail-cells-a-rare-look-inside-tacomas-old-city-hall/
