Save Dallas City Hall Coalition Launches Petition to Block Relocation of City Government
On October 2, 2023, the Save Dallas City Hall Coalition (SDCHC) initiated a petition campaign aiming to collect 20,000 signatures within 60 days. Should they succeed, an amendment could appear on the May 2027 ballot, allowing voters to decide if the city government should continue operating from Dallas City Hall. Bruce Richardson, the coalition's president, cautioned that leaving the building might result in its sale and potential demolition. The issue gained attention following Mayor Eric L. Johnson's August 2025 proposal to evaluate the building's significance. Architecture critic Mark Lamster condemned the abandonment plan, labeling it a "boondoggle." A petition-signing event is scheduled for October 17, 2023, at Pacific Plaza.
Key facts
- The Save Dallas City Hall Coalition launched a petition on Friday, October 2, seeking 20,000 signatures in 60 days.
- If successful, an amendment would go on the May 2027 ballot requiring a referendum on whether city government must remain in Dallas City Hall.
- Dallas City Hall, at 1500 Marilla Street on a 10-acre downtown site, is a Brutalist landmark with a 34-degree downward-angled facade.
- The building was commissioned in 1966 by then-Mayor J. Erik Jonsson and designed by I. M. Pei.
- Controversy began in August 2025 when Mayor Eric L. Johnson asked the City Council to evaluate the building's suitability.
- A November 4, 2025, Finance Committee agenda includes a closed-session item on the property at 1500 Marilla Street.
- Architecture critic Mark Lamster, a 2026 Pulitzer Prize winner, opposes abandonment, calling it a "boondoggle" and "tragic farce."
- SDCHC member Quin Mathews said polling shows 73 to 83 percent of the public wants the city to stay at City Hall.
- A petition-signing event is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 17, in Pacific Plaza.
Entities
Artists
- I. M. Pei
- Bruce Richardson
- Eric L. Johnson
- J. Erik Jonsson
- Mark Lamster
- Quin Mathews
- Laura Miller
Institutions
- Save Dallas City Hall Coalition
- Dallas City Council
- Dallas City Council Finance Committee
- Glasstire
- Dallas Morning News
- Punch List Architecture Newsletter
- National Gallery of Art
- Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
- Louvre
- Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center
- Dallas Mavericks
Locations
- Dallas
- United States
- 1500 Marilla Street
- Pacific Plaza
- Washington, D.C.
- Cleveland
- Paris
- France
- Dallas Arts District