Landmarks Commission recommends protections for City Hall

Local News

Boston City Hall, the brutalist behemoth that continues to divide residents, could soon gain an official designation that would preserve its character.

More than 50 years after being completed, the divisive Boston City Hall could soon be designated as an official landmark by the city government, protecting it from major changes that could “compromise its integrity.”

The process through which City Hall could attain landmark status started back in 2007, when a group of voters submitted a petition to the Boston Landmarks Commission asking for the designation. The Commission released its study report on the building this week, concluding that the exterior and interior main lobby space of the concrete behemoth in the heart of Boston should become an official landmark. 

Now, the city is engaging in a period of public feedback, with a hearing scheduled for Oct. 24. Members of the public can attend that hearing to share their thoughts on the matter, or fill out an online form. The report will be amended, if necessary, before the Commission votes on whether or not to designate City Hall as a landmark. City Council and Mayor Michelle Wu would also have to approve. 

The imposing building, with its odd, inverted pyramid looming like a fortress over Government Center, has been loathed and lauded over the years. Whether or not City Hall is beautiful or ugly, the Commission concluded that it is without a doubt notable. 

“While popular opinion does not always look favorably on the building, Boston City Hall is architecturally significant as a bold example of Brutalist architecture in a period when steel and glass structures were becoming the standard,” The Commision wrote in its report. 

The story of City Hall is the story of Boston itself, of the city’s decline and attempts at rejuvenation. From 1950 to 1960, the idea of “urban renewal” gained momentum as leaders sought to deal with the loss of middle class families to the suburbs. Boston’s population declined by about 100,000 people during this decade, retail sales fell, and the number of jobs decreased. The city was forced to raise taxes, perpetuating a cycle that caused more people to leave Boston, according to the study. 

What would become Government Center was then known as Scollay Square, a commercial center that had become home to seemingly unsavory businesses like burlesque houses and tattoo parlors, according to the report. This “blighted” area found itself in the crosshairs of those looking to revitalize the city.  

So in 1961 Mayor John F. Collins proposed a design competition for a new City Hall in the area. A total of 256 entries were whittled down to eight finalists. The winning design, from architects Gerhard Kallmann and Michael McKinnell, received effusive praise by the competition’s judges. 

“It is a daring yet classical architectural statement, contained within a vigorous unified form,” they wrote in their decision. 

City Hall is far from the only example of brutalism in Boston, but it is the most notable. The term comes from the French “béton brut,” meaning raw concrete. It is known as one of the most polarizing architectural styles in the world, and is characterized by exposed concrete and striking geometric forms.

The work to build City Hall and form Government Center had lasting impacts both locally and nationally, the Commision said in their report. It helped catalyze growth in the city’s downtown area, leading to a “vibrant commercial center with a focus on preservation.” On a wider scale. It helped popularize the urban planning principle of grouping civic and governmental buildings together in an easily-walkable environment.

City Hall is not likely to go anywhere anytime soon. But its designation as an official landmark would ensure that City Hall’s distinct features remain intact and at the center of debate for future generations.