Dallas City Council Members Cara Mendelsohn and Paul Ridley hosted a public forum on Monday night to gather community perspectives on the future of Dallas City Hall, as residents expressed concerns about the potential demolition of the historic building.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, the nearly 50-year-old building faces significant structural and maintenance challenges, including issues with its parking garage, HVAC systems, and backup generators.
Recent estimates by the City Council have suggested that the cost to repair City Hall could reach $350 million, although repairs could also exceed nearly $500 million over the next decade.
Although multiple Dallas City Council Members, including Council Members Zarin Gracey, Maxie Johnson, and Jaime Resendez, have voiced support for potentially moving out of the building, Mendelsohn told The Dallas Express that the “issue is being pushed very fast.”
As a result, she and Ridley chose to host the public forum to hear from Dallas residents on the matter.
This forum was also attended by Council Members Bill Roth and Paula Blackmon, though no other City Council Members chose to attend the event.
During the forum, Dallas residents pointed to the historical significance of City Hall.
Anthony Rash, a design professional who resides in District 1, called City Hall a “vessel of memory.”
“When we demolish buildings, we don’t just lose brick and mortar, we sever our connection to collective memory and place, and we lose these unique places that give Dallas its own soul,” Rash said.
Peter Vahala, an architect who currently resides in the Oak Lawn neighborhood, explained that the style of City Hall contributes to its allure, calling the building “iconic” and detailing how it has helped shape the city.
“It’s old enough to be preserved on the register, but it’s also iconic in a way that it has a specific architectural design called ‘brutalist.’ And many people may not understand it, but it has value, similar to how the Adolphus Hotel has value. It’s a different kind of architectural expression. But I really believe that this building needs to be saved, and I’m more than happy to help any way I can.”
In addition to the historical aspect of City Hall, multiple Dallas residents questioned the accuracy of cost estimates for repairs.
Ed Zara, a property manager residing in District 14, highlighted that the City Council discussed deferred maintenance costs one year ago during a budget meeting, with estimates for that cost coming in at approximately $24 million.
“That number has increased to $175 million and just recently $375 million, which shows staff has no clue what this building actually needs,” Zara said.
Jesus Peña, a real estate agent from the Oak Cliff neighborhood in District 1, explained how the repairs for the City Hall parking garage had an estimated price range of $25 million to $142 million, saying that it is “absolutely insane” to have a roughly $120 million variance.
“So I very much agree that something needs to be done to get more accurate numbers on this. If you’re looking at this as a real estate deal, this would be, like, a no-deal, right? Absolutely insane that we’re going based off such different variances in prices.”
The lack of transparency for the costs was just one of many issues addressed by the Dallas residents in attendance, with various residents also choosing to take aim at the Dallas Mavericks.
This piece of the conversation arises due to rumors that the Mavericks could purchase the land for an arena if the city chooses to demolish City Hall.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, the Mavericks have been exploring potential arenas for the team once their lease with the American Airlines Center expires in 2031, with both the franchise and the city preferring to keep the team in Downtown Dallas.
Downtown Dallas resident Samuel Mortimer was direct in his statement regarding this topic, expressing his disappointment that the city would consider selling the land to the Mavericks.
“If we sell the seat of government for an arena and a casino, that will be the most shameful thing the city has ever done,” said Mortimer.
Bruce Richardson of District 14 provided a similar outlook on the potential arena, calling out Mavericks owner Miriam Adelson.
“Also, our 20-year-old arena is good enough for Peter Gabriel, but it’s not good enough for Miriam Adelson?”
At the end of the forum, Ridley said that he, Mendelsohn, Roth, and Blackmon had each “gotten the message” about the desire to save City Hall, urging residents to remain active in the fight to repair the historic building.
“We have four here tonight. And they’ve heard the message from you. But there are 14 plus one members of the City Council. Please let all of them know how you think about this issue. That you want to save City Hall.”