Dallas City Hall repair plan could take 10 years to complete

DALLAS - A panel of experts will present a 10-year repair plan for the current Dallas City Hall building during a City Council meeting tomorrow as the city continues to debate on the structure's future.

Dallas City Hall repair estimates

What we know:

On Wednesday, May 20, Dallas City Council members will hear from a panel presenting a plan to repair Dallas City Hall instead of demolishing it.

The meeting was requested by city council members who want to save the building after it voted to explore leaving the I.M. Pei-designed structure on March 4.

A panel of experts will break down which Dallas City Hall repairs should be a priority over the course of 10 years, and how much those repairs would cost.

AECOM, a Dallas-based consulting company, estimated the baseline repairs at around $329 million. Initial estimates on repairing the structure tallied $1.4 billion.

Tomorrow's meeting will also include closed-session debates about potential locations to buy or lease for a future Dallas City Hall.

Activists look to save iconic structure

Ahead of tomorrow's presentation, the group Save Dallas City Hall is pursuing several options to keep the building in place.

The organization points to "Demolition By Neglect," a city ordinance that prevents neglecting the history of a building to justify demolishing it.

Save Dallas City Hall also argues that the land Dallas City Hall sits on is park land. The State of Texas requires an election to sell park land for a for-profit purpose.

Dallas Mavericks future arena

The Dallas Mavericks have expressed interest in the land Dallas City Hall sits on for a potential new arena.

With the future of Dallas City Hall undecided, the team has yet to submit an official proposal, but a group of UT Arlington students have a proposal of their own.

UTA's College of Architecture submitted a proposal to keep the current Dallas City Hall building while building a new Mavericks arena on the 47 acres between the Dallas Wings' new arena and the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.

Below is an excerpt from the student proposal:

"The "10 Presidents" have collaborated with Design Studio 4557 at the University of Texas at Arlington’s College of Architecture Planning and Public Policy, (CAPPA) in response to the City Manager’s Call for Concepts and Ideas. We are providing a Master Plan for the area which we call CitySouth. This is a detailed urban design vision for the portion of Downtown from Young Street south across the I-30 Canyon into The Cedars and stretching west to east from Reunion to Farmers Market, intended to provide a context for important pending decision-making about City Hall and a new home for the Dallas Mavericks."

What they're saying:

Sarah Crain, the Executive Director of Preservation Dallas, says it's the city's job to repair rather than replace.

"We believe that the city of Dallas is accountable for repairing not just this structure, but all of their city-owned structures," Crain said. "That includes your local police station, fire station, the libraries, our streets and roads.

"We want to make sure we are compelling the city to maintain a standard of care. And they have an opportunity to start with our home base, Dallas City Hall."

Crain appreciates the UT Arlington students getting involved in the building's future.

"I love the fact that they have encouraged these fresh minds, these students at UTA, to absolutely engage in this public discourse and be a part of the solution, because we can have it all," Crain said. "We can have a brand-new convention center. We can keep Dallas City Hall. And we can meet the Mavs' needs to have a new Dallas Stadium."

What's next:

The Dallas City Council meeting gets underway at 9 a.m. CT on Wednesday, May 20.