A Monumental Decision for Dallas City Hall: The World is Now Watching
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Dallas City Hall was named by the World Monument Fund as one of the sites on its new Irreplaceable America List last week. “As the nation approaches its 250th anniversary, Irreplaceable America is a call to protect the places that reflect the richness of that history, and the role heritage plays in education, community memory, and civic life,” Bénédicte de Montlaur, President and CEO, World Monuments Fund, said in a press release.
What does this mean? It means the world is now watching what happens in Dallas.
The World Monument Fund began in 1965 to “safeguard irreplaceable cultural heritage, ”and has contributed to the conservation and preservation of over 700 sites across 113 countries. They have worked on the stabilization of the ancient temple complexes in Angkor Wat, Cambodia, the conservation of the Moai statues on Easter Island, and in Venice to support restoration of monuments, frescoes, and palazzos after the 1966 floods.
Creating this new list and placing Dallas City Hall at the top of the 10 irreplaceable sites should be game-changing for its future. It means this building is not only considered architecturally and historically significant, but it’s now also considered a cultural site.
When world organizations recognize Dallas City Hall as a building that shaped the nation’s history, we must ask why our current city leaders do not understand this.
Dallas once had visionary leaders who put citizens and the public good first. In 1964, Mayor J. Erik Jonsson, a founder of Texas Instruments, initiated a plan called Goals for Dallas. The impetus was to rebuild civic morale and mend the disastrous image left by the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Dallas was dubbed “The City of Hate.” How do you recover from that? You go big, bold, and dramatic. And good leadership welcomed citizen input.
Among the Goals for Dallas projects were the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, the University of Texas at Dallas, the Dallas Museum of Art, and, most importantly, the creation of a Dallas City Hall that was a true reflection of the people and a vision of forward thinking.
The new City Hall was to be purpose-built, symbolize civic pride, and provide a state-of-the-art “People’s House” that was not only functional but also reflected forward thinking. City leaders were endeavoring to recapture optimism and our can-do spirit. I.M. Pei was chosen because he was also a visionary. Today, he is considered to be one of the most influential architects of the 20th century, and the Dallas City Hall is regarded as one of the most significant works of civic architecture in America.
“This recognition by the World Monument Fund is an additional step from just the protection of architecture,” former Executive Director of the Dallas Arts District and former Dallas city councilwoman Veletta Lill said. “It’s the protection of a cultural asset.
“People are concerned about the potential loss on multiple levels. There is the loss of architectural heritage, the environmental impact of demolishing a precast concrete structure that would have a devastating impact on the immediate environment, and the cultural significance. The Asian American community is concerned. I.M. Pei is a Chinese American immigrant. His influence on American society is important to them,” she continued. “As we have seen, organization after organization raise the alarm, I feel like the World Monument Fund is on the next level of concern about cultural assets. This is the most significant architect-designed structure on the list. It speaks to this being a cultural asset and also to the fact that the world is now watching.”
Global awareness means renewed questions. Why would nine Dallas city leaders ever consider the destruction of what is now considered a world monument, and why would they want to vacate our historically and architecturally significant seat of government? And more to the point, why do we have a situation where only nine people can make an irreversible decision without a vote from the citizens?
Where are our visionaries, our innovators, our true civic leaders, those who work not for developers or individual businesses, but for a better Dallas? The time has come to reconsider decisions about a structurally sound, purpose-built seat of government, made in haste with little accurate information. Owning up to making the wrong decision is indeed the best sign of true leadership.
The world is watching.
For more information about the World Monument Fund and Irreplaceable America, visit wmf.org.
To learn more about Dallas City Hall, visit SaveDallasCityHall.com.
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Wonderful article, Karen! I’m so glad to see the critical question raised – how can nine people make a decision that that so many Dallas residents don’t agree with? And while numerous national and international cultural communities have loudly objected to?
Do not tear down our icon Dallas City Hall. So short sighted. Lots of other ways to design Downtown and arenas around it and tie all of Dallas together… Downtown, Uptown, West End, Trinity, Deep Ellum, etc. Plan Dallas big and bold as we have in past. Use foresight! David Pittman, Lakewood
“Why would nine Dallas city leaders ever consider the destruction of what is now considered a world monument..” I’m guessing because it serves them somehow, rather than the citizens of Dallas.
I wonder how can the same city that built the wonderful Clyde Warren Park turn around and remove city hall. It’s one step forward, two steps back.
Exactly. There is NO civic leadership in Dallas at the moment. NO one putting the public good first.
Karen, In this post you ask all of the right questions. With new pressure from the World Monument Fund, I hope Dallas politicians will finally unite in response with the right decision to save and restore City Hall!
Thank you Rabbi, I feel strongly that great leadership can still exist by correcting decisions made in haste and under pressure from outside forces. There is not a single reason in the world to vacate our seat of government and destroy the iconic building that is the very symbol of democracy in Dallas.
Thank you for shining light on this momumential City Hall.
Great work as always, Karen! Very informative!
Time for Dallas Museum of Art ( Deedee Rose, Mary Clark, Howard Rachofsky , etc) as well as UT Dallas to RISE to the occasion and #savedallascityhall
You make an interesting point Sharon. There are still some private citizens that care more about civic pride and the public good than lining their own very deep pockets.
And now my friends, the world is watching!
1. What is the super-majority required to abandon City Hall–surely it is several votes more than 9, and why are they wasting $3,000,000 if they don’t have those votes? 2.Isn’t a public vote required because a part of the land is park land?
Very good questions. There are legal issues to be certain that will tie this up in court for years unless the city leadership admits their grave mistake and shows REAL leadership by dropping this nonsense, repairing the most pressing items and remaining in place. Remember no one was complaining about anything two years ago. And there are no systemic failures in this building. Wasting money seems to be a past time of theirs to me ranking right up there with not spending money they do have, for years, for specific items. An audit is surely warranted.
I worked in the Dallas Department of Planning and Development in that building from 1979-84, early in my career. I moved to Dallas from Louisville, Ky., a much smaller and sleepier city. To me, the bold architecture of City Hall spoke of the city’s dynamism and energy, of limitless opportunity. I was not wrong about that. Since that time, the DFW metro area grew from around 3 million to more than 8 million currently. In the next few years it will overtake Chicago (my current home) to become the third largest metro in the U.S. I hope that city leaders wake up in time to see City Hall as more than just another public building. Then and now, It’s the tangible symbol of Dallas’ can-do spirit and civic pride — an embodiment of the energy and vision that continues to attract new businesses and residents to the city.
Robert you are so right. It IS a symbol of our can-do spirit. Demolishing greatness fails to ATTRACT greatness
Thank you, Karen! This news brings at least a glimmer of hope.
“why do we have a situation where only nine people can make an irreversible decision without a vote from the citizens?” This has been my question all along. Furthermore – why would any of those 9 want to go down in history as the people arrogant enough to take on that irreversible decision! Regardless of the rules that may allow it, I have no doubt the council has the power to set aside those rules and put it to a public vote.
This sheer arrogance is one of the things that foments the perception of backroom deals. I hope the citizens of Dallas WAKE UP and turn up the heat on every one of the council members!
Randy Angell, excellent perspective—Your last paragraph says it all most eloquently. Repeat—
This sheer arrogance is one of the things that fomoents the perception of backroom deals. I
hope the citizens of Dallas WAKE UP and turn up the heat on every one of the council members.
The POWER OF POSTIVE THINKING AND PRAYER WILL MAKE IT HAPPEN.
WAKE UP DALLAS
I’m reaching out with concerns from China. Dallas City Hall is a key work in our architectural history textbooks. My classmates and I were shocked to learn its uncertain future, and we’re all hoping it can be preserved as a vital historic landmark.
Thank you for your comment Sunny. I suggest you contact the mayor, city manager and city council with your concerns.