Des Moines City Hall to be emptied. What will become of the historic building?

Des Moines is adding its historic City Hall to the list of buildings it plans to vacate as it consolidates its operations in a former Nationwide Mutual Insurance office it purchased late last year.

The city had previously indicated that it would sell off two of its other riverfront properties — Des Moines Police Headquarters at 25 E. First St and the Argonne Armory at 602 Robert D. Ray Drive — when those departments move to the new offices at 1200 Locust St. The location was renamed in December as the T.M. Franklin Cownie City Administration Building, in honor of the retiring mayor.

The possibility of moving some or all of the offices in City Hall, 400 Robert D. Ray Drive, was mentioned, but the plan will become official Monday with approval from City Council.

The 66,000-square-foot City Hall is three stories tall and sits on a 1.244-acre parcel on the east bank of the Des Moines River between the Locust and Grand Avenue bridges. A resolution listed on the consent portion of the agenda, which can be approved without discussion, notes that the City Hall is "no longer sufficient to meet present or long-term needs of the city residents or city staff."

The resolution also notes the costs associated with heating and maintaining the building, security issues and challenges related to remodeling the existing structure.

However, unlike with the Armory and police headquarters, the city doesn't anticipate on putting City Hall on the market. A communication to the council says the city staff plan on putting together a long-term lease agreement similar to the 2009 deal that allowed World Food Prize Foundation century-long use of the former city library at 100 Locust St.

Previously: 'Spaces the public can come to and enjoy' goal for reuse of Des Moines police HQ, armory

"It is not anticipated that the City Hall property will be sold as part of future redevelopment proposals that will be considered," the communication item says.

Des Moines to solicit proposals for City Hall that emphasize public use

City records show that the building ― renovated from 2016 to 2018 at a cost of $5.5 million ― will be available for "repositioning as an asset to the community" as early as 2026.

In the meantime, a resolution slated to be passed Monday evening gives the city manager's office permission to begin fielding interest from prospective occupants. Des Moines will give preference to projects that put an emphasis on public use while honoring the building's historic features.

Des Moines recently selected Gold Cap Development, Sidekick Development and Wade Investments to develop the parking lot across from City Hall. The plans call for 76 apartments and multiple restaurant and retail spaces on the first floor.

The deadline to submit proposals is December 31, 2024. Submissions will be reviewed by stakeholders and later presented to City Council.

Announcement follows interest in neighboring property

Des Moines Performing Arts announced Thursday that it intended to make a bid for the Argonne Armory at 602 Robert D. Ray Drive — another prime piece of city-owned real estate on the edge of the East Village.

CEO Jeff Chelesvig in an email to supporters Thursday said the nonprofit will present a proposal this week to the City Council to purchase the armory and transform it into a "state-of-the-art" education center. City staff estimate that renovations would cost $15 million.

While the nonprofit currently operates programming at the Temple Theater for the Performing Arts, Stoner Theater and Des Moines Civic Center, Chelesvig said it sorely needs the extra space as demand for programming increases.

"Summer camps sell out with a waiting list in under 90 minutes and our Iowa High School Musical Theater Awards program has grown to be the largest of its kind in the nation," Chelesvig said. "As we have shared before, we are well positioned to address this growing need; however, one hurdle remains — the need for physical space."

Building was a celebration of new governing style

Built in 1909 and 1910 at a cost of $500,000 ― roughly $15 million in today’s dollars ― Des Moines City Hall was seen as a celebration of the city’s adoption in 1907 of a new commission style of government that became a national model, imitated by many other cities.

Bob Turner, an associate professor of political science at Skidmore College, wrote in “The Curious History of the Commission Form of Government” that the new governing mode included nonpartisan elections, merit selection of employees and the ability of citizens to initiate referendums on issues and recalls of elected officials (the commission government’s emphasis on bureaucratic expertise would later become controversial, and Des Moines would abandon it in favor of the current council-manager system of government in the 1950s.)

The new building, in keeping with the theme of citizen empowerment and openness, eschewed private offices for minor officials and featured a central hall on the second floor where residents could speak to representatives of every department of the government. Marking the laying of the City Hall cornerstone was a cavalry parade with 1,000 horses, speeches by dignitaries from around the nation, a banquet and a large display depicting planned civic improvements, the Des Moines Register reported.

“It is the purpose to make this ceremony and other exercises during the day and evening an exhibition of municipal progress under the commission form of government,” then-Mayor James R. Hanna said in a proclamation, calling for the city’s businesses and institutions to observe the day as an unofficial holiday.

Addison Lathers covers growth and development for the Des Moines metro. Reach her at 608-931-1761 or alathers@registermedia.com, and follow her on X at @addisonlathers.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Des Moines to move city operations from historic City Hall