Dallas Mayor Favors Redevelopment Of I.M. Pei-Designed City Hall As Council Calls Vote
After two major dominoes fell this week, a decision on Downtown Dallas’ biggest remaining game piece appears to be next on the board.
The Dallas City Council could decide the fate of the iconic 1M SF City Hall building during a special meeting called hours after Mayor Eric Johnson said he supports redevelopment. The agenda for the June 10 meeting includes items on relocating City Hall employees and functions, authorizing a phased repair of the structure and allowing the city manager to pursue opportunities to redevelop the property.
The meeting was called days after the Dallas Mavericks announced plans to purchase 104 acres of the former Valley View Center mall site in North Dallas to construct a mixed-use district anchored by a new arena. The Dallas City Hall site was the only other location that Mavs CEO Rick Welts said the team was considering for the new arena in January.
Just one day after the Mavs' news, the Dallas Stars announced the team had signed a letter of intent to build a more than $1B mixed-use district with a new arena at The Shops at Willow Bend mall site in Plano.
The sports teams’ relocations leave Dallas without a major contender to spur redevelopment of the 47-year-old building designed by architect I.M. Pei. The future of the iconic seven-story structure has been up for debate for months, with a February report from the Dallas Economic Development Corporation finding that needed renovations could total $906M.
The council heard from a pair of consultants this week who estimated that phased repair work would likely range from only $500M to $600M, D Magazine reported.
Dallas' mayor told CBS Texas he believes the repair costs are too high to stay in the building.
“I would be in favor, for sure, of us saving the taxpayers considerable money by leaving this obsolete building,” Johnson said this week. “That would make this location available for development, which I would also support.”
Johnson said the redevelopment of the City Hall site would be a “key element” in the revitalization of Downtown Dallas.
Revitalization discussions kicked into high gear after AT&T announced in January it plans to relocate its global headquarters from Downtown’s Whitacre Tower to a 54-acre site in Plano.
The advocacy group Save Dallas City Hall is considering multiple lawsuits against Dallas over the City Hall site. The group said last month a city policy approved in 2021 requires a council supermajority to replace any municipal buildings.
Johnson told CBS Texas he didn’t know whether there was enough council support to approve redevelopment of the City Hall site. He also said the impending relocations of the Mavericks and Stars aren't final and that City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert is continuing negotiations with both teams.
“She is still in regular daily contact, basically with both teams about options, with respect to the Stars in particular, to stay at the American Airlines Center,” Johnson said. “That is still a goal of mine.”
