Status in use Completed 1913 Opened 17 October 1914 Architect Charles D. Hill | Type Municipal Government Opening October 17, 1914 Owner CITY OF DALLAS | |
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Similar Mercantile Continental Building, Titche‑Goettinger Building, Davis Building, Corrigan Tower, Tower Petroleum Building | ||
Jfk sites part viii dallas municipal building
The Dallas Municipal Building is a Dallas Landmark located along S. Harwood Street between Main and Commerce Street in the Main Street District of downtown Dallas, Texas that served as the city's fourth City Hall. The structure is also a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark and a contributing property in the Harwood Historic District, located across the street from Main Street Garden Park.
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History
The City purchased land for the fourth City Hall in 1911-1912 from Eliza Trice, Otto H. Lang and the Sweeney Family. Designed by C. D. Hill in the Beaux-Arts style, plans were drawn up in 1913 and the Spring Fred A. Jones Building Company began construction. The building company filed for bankruptcy later that year, and the Board of Commissioners passed a resolution to accept the sale and transfer of materials to C. C. Street, Jr., who completed the building. The Municipal Building opened October 17, 1914.
In 1956 the Municipal Building Annex was completed at 2014 Main St. and attached as a connected building to 106 S. Harwood and became the home to the Dallas Police Department.
After the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested and jailed in the Municipal Building on November 22, 1963. Two days later he was fatally shot by Jack Ruby while being led out by police in the basement garage.
Dallas City Hall vacated the structure in 1978 when it moved to its current location at 1500 Marilla St. In 2003 the Dallas Police Department moved its offices to the new Jack Evans Police Headquarters at 1400 S. Lamar St, leaving only municipal courts in the building. The building suffered partial abandonment and neglect as the city tried to find a new use for the historic structure.
On June 19, 2009, Texas Governor Rick Perry signed SB 956 into law, establishing the first public law school in North Texas. University of North Texas at Dallas College of Law plans to begin taking applications in the Fall of 2013 for classes which will begin in 2014. Initially, courses will be held at the nearby Universities Center at Dallas while extensive renovations of the Municipal Building are made. The building will then serve as the law school's permanent home and the municipal courts will move into a renovated Municipal Building Annex.