A long‑awaited city report estimates repairs to Dallas City Hall could cost as much as $1.1 billion over the next two decades and would require the building to be vacated for at least five years, officials said.
In more than 1,000 pages of reports released Friday evening, city officials detailed structural problems throughout the 47‑year‑old building, including water intrusion, localized concrete deterioration, and cracking and other failures where City Hall connects to its attached parking garage.
While “no evidence of widespread structural instability was observed at the time of the assessment, deficiencies were localized and need to be addressed,” the report said.
Urgent repairs and soaring costs
The city pegs immediate urgent repairs at $329 million, but the costs climb sharply to bring the building fully up to date.
“We need to compare the cost of renovating City Hall, bringing it up to code, because it’s frankly not under code right now,” said Dallas City Council member Chad West, who chairs the city’s finance committee, which is set to review the report on Monday. “I think we’re all feeling sort of the implications of what a landmark decision this is going to be for our city.”
The report highlights hundreds of areas in the building that are not compliant with requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Repairs over the years have been patchwork, the report said, making it necessary to replace the HVAC system and the roof. Features in the building, along with its technology, are obsolete, it says.
Breakdown of projected spending
Here’s where the money would go:
$47 million for the roof and exterior$9 million for interior repairs$211 million for HVAC and plumbing systemsMore than $60 million for structural and parking garage fixesDebate over the building’s future
The future of the iconic structure has been up for debate since November 2025, when some council members questioned whether it was worth spending the then-estimated hundreds of millions to make repairs to the aging building.
Other council members called the decision to abandon the building a rush to judgment.
In November, Mayor Eric Johnson told CBS News Texas he wanted to see all the facts before weighing in on what to do.
Next steps for council review
The building, designed by architect I.M. Pei, opened in 1978. It has been praised by preservationists as an irreplaceable example of modernist architecture.
After the report is presented to the finance committee on Monday afternoon, it will go to the economic development committee on March 2 and to the full City Council on March 4.
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