From the
Brisbane City Council website:City Hall is one of Queensland's most significant heritage and cultural icons.
Since its opening in 1930, City Hall has been a symbol of civic pride and over the years it has become one of Brisbane's greatest icons and community meeting places. The building has played an important role in the lives of our local community in times of war, peace, celebration and refuge and has rightly earned the title of the 'People's Place'.
City Hall is home to Brisbane’s civic, community, artistic and social life and has hosted many famous guests including The Rolling Stones and Queen Elizabeth II.
The Queensland Heritage Register and the National Trust of Queensland list City Hall as a 'culturally, historically and architecturally significant building'. The building also features on Council's own Heritage Register.
City Hall closed its doors in January 2010 for restoration and repair and re-opened to the public on 6 April 2013.
Historical facts
City Hall has social and historical importance for locals, in particular, those whose families helped in the design and construction City Hall.
Built in the 1920s, it was:
- one of the most expensive Australian buildings (it cost around a million pounds)
- ranked as the second largest construction of its time, only outdone by the Sydney Harbour Bridge
- the first major Australian concrete 'column and beam' building constructed
Design and architecture
Designed by architectural firm, Hall and Prentice, City Hall has a great circular hall and corridors surounded by offices and function venues. The main entrance from King George Square is emphasised by imposing Corinthian columns that are nearly 14 metres high. The building has a clock tower rising 92 metres above the ground. One of the main building features is its grand marble staircase.
The Main Auditorium is City Hall's single largest space. The copper dome over the room is the largest in Australia, spanning 31 metres in diameter. The dome is supported on a brick base that allows the interior of the Main Auditorium to be unobscured by columns.
City Hall workers tried to use locally-sourced materials and were proud to handcraft the finer details of the building. The artistry and craftsmanship of the City Hall architecture draws thousands of interstate and overseas guests to the building each year.
