View source for Manhattan Municipal Building

{{Short description|Office skyscraper in Manhattan, New York}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox NRHP
| name = Manhattan Municipal Building
| nrhp_type = 
| image = Manhattan Municipal Building (6215147594).jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption = 
| location = [[Manhattan]], New York City
| coordinates = {{Coord|40|42|47|N|74|00|14|W|type:landmark_region:US-NY|display=inline,title}}
| area = 
| district_map = {{Maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=250|frame-height=250|zoom=14|type=shape|stroke-color=#f44|id=Q1156778|marker=|title=Municipal Building}}
| built = 1909–1914<ref name="aia4" /><ref name="nycland" />
| architect = [[William M. Kendall]] of [[McKim, Mead & White]]
| architecture = Mixture of {{Plain list|
* [[Ancient Roman architecture|Ancient Roman]]
* [[Beaux-Arts architecture|Beaux-Arts]]
* [[French Renaissance architecture|French Renaissance]]
* [[Renaissance architecture|Renaissance]]
}}
| added = October 18, 1972
| refnum = 72000879<ref name="nris" />
| designated_other1 = New York State Register of Historic Places
| designated_other1_abbr = NYSRHP
| designated_other1_date = August 2, 1982
| designated_other1_number = 06101.000372
| designated_other1_num_position = bottom
| designated_other2_name = New York City Landmark
| designated_other2_date = February 1, 1966<ref name="NYCL-0079"/>
| designated_other2_abbr = NYCL
| designated_other2_link = New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission
| designated_other2_number = 0079
| designated_other2_color = #ffe978
}}

The '''David N. Dinkins Municipal Building''' (originally the '''Municipal Building''' and later known as the '''Manhattan Municipal Building''') is a 40-story, {{Convert|580|ft|m|abbr=|adj=on}} building at 1 [[Centre Street (Manhattan)|Centre Street]], east of [[Chambers Street (Manhattan)|Chambers Street]], in the [[Civic Center, Manhattan|Civic Center]] neighborhood of [[Manhattan]] in [[New York City]]. The structure was built to accommodate increased governmental space demands after the [[City of Greater New York|1898 consolidation]] of the city's [[Borough (New York City)|five boroughs]]. Construction began in 1909 and continued through 1914 at a total cost of $12&nbsp;million ({{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=12,000,000|start_year=1914|r=-3|fmt=eq}}).

Designed by [[McKim, Mead & White]], the Manhattan Municipal Building was among the last buildings erected as part of the [[City Beautiful movement]] in New York. Its architectural style has been characterized as [[Ancient Roman architecture|Roman Imperial]], [[Renaissance architecture|Italian Renaissance]], [[French Renaissance architecture|French Renaissance]], or [[Beaux-Arts architecture|Beaux-Arts]]. The Municipal Building is one of the largest governmental buildings in the world, with about {{convert|1|e6ft2}} of office space. The base incorporates a [[New York City Subway|subway]] station, while the top includes the gilded ''Civic Fame'' statue.

The Municipal Building was erected after three previous competitions to build a single municipal building for New York City's government had failed. In 1907, the city's Commissioner of Bridges held a competition to design the building in conjunction with a subway and trolley terminal at the [[Brooklyn Bridge]], of which McKim, Mead & White's plan was selected. The first offices in the Municipal Building were occupied by 1913. In later years, it received several renovations, including elevator replacements in the 1930s and restorations in the mid-1970s and the late 1980s. The [[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]] designated the building a landmark in 1966, and it was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1972. In October 2015, the building was renamed after [[David N. Dinkins]], New York City's first African-American mayor.

==Site==
[[File:Sanborn Manhattan V. 1 Plate 09 right half publ. 1894 (cropped).jpg|left|thumb|The Manhattan Municipal Building occupies the site bounded on this map by Centre Street, Duane Street, and Park Row.]]
The Manhattan Municipal Building is located on the eastern side of [[Centre Street (Manhattan)|Centre Street]], in the [[Civic Center, Manhattan|Civic Center]] of [[Manhattan]] in [[New York City]]. It occupies the length of two city blocks, between Duane Street to the north and the [[Brooklyn Bridge]] ramps to the south.<ref name="NYCityMap">{{Cite web|title=NYCityMap|url=http://maps.nyc.gov/|website=NYC.gov|publisher=[[New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications]]|access-date=March 20, 2020|archive-date=February 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219214900/http://maps.nyc.gov/doitt/nycitymap/|url-status=live}}</ref> The west–east [[Chambers Street (Manhattan)|Chambers Street]] has its eastern terminus at Centre Street, at the center of the building's base.<ref name="NYDCAS" /> The site had a frontage of approximately {{convert|448|ft}} on Centre Street to the west, {{cvt|361|ft}} on Park Row to the southeast, {{cvt|339|ft}} on Duane Street to the northeast, and {{cvt|71|ft}} on Tryon Row to the east; except for Centre Street, all of these streets have been relocated or removed.<ref name="p910532099">{{Cite magazine |date=Jul 1, 1908 |title=The New Municipal Building: Industrial Schools and the Small Towns Industrial Colleges New York's New Post Office Building |magazine=Carpentry and Building |page=236 |id={{ProQuest|910532099}}}}</ref><ref name="p507936186">{{cite news |date=26 Jul 1909 |title=Excavation for New York's Twelve-Million Dollar Municipal Building Foundations Now Under Way: Magnitude of New York's Huge Municipal Building Shown by Its Dimensions |page=7 |work=The Christian Science Monitor |id={{ProQuest|507936186}}}}</ref> Near the Municipal Building are the [[Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse]] and [[St. Andrew Church (New York City)|St. Andrew Church]] to the northeast; [[1 Police Plaza]] and the [[Metropolitan Correctional Center, New York|Metropolitan Correctional Center]] to the east; [[Surrogate's Courthouse]]  and [[Tweed Courthouse]] to the west; and [[New York City Hall]] to the southwest.<ref name="NYCityMap" />

Prior to the Municipal Building's construction, several streets passed through the building site, which had been located at the south end of the [[Five Points, Manhattan|Five Points]] neighborhood. New Chambers Street continued east through the center of the building, while the west-east Reade Street continued eastward through what is now the building's northern edge. City Hall Place (now Cardinal Hayes Place) originated at the intersection of Chambers and Centre Streets, crossing southwest–northeast through the building site.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=October 25, 1890|title=The New Municipal Building|url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_006_19.pdf|journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide|volume=46|pages=543–544|via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]]|number=1180|access-date=June 14, 2020|archive-date=May 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509183742/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_006_19.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The area to the south of the Municipal Building was once known as Tryon Row, a one-block east–west street between Centre Street and [[Park Row (Manhattan)|Park Row]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Tryon Row in 1882 and in 1932|url=http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/ee8091e0-b94d-0132-134a-58d385a7bbd0|date=October 15, 1932|website=NYPL Digital Collections|access-date=May 14, 2020|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174358/https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/ee8091e0-b94d-0132-134a-58d385a7bbd0|url-status=live}}</ref> The Municipal Building's site was occupied by buildings including the old headquarters of the ''[[New Yorker Staats-Zeitung]]''.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gayle|first=Margot|date=July 15, 1990|title=Seat of Government|page=253|work=New York Daily News|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51030614/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174404/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51030614/seat-of-government/|url-status=live}}</ref> Immediately to the south were two [[elevated railway]] stations: the [[Park Row Terminal]] of the [[Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company]] (closed 1944)<ref>{{cite news|date=March 5, 1944|title=Brooklyn Bridge Train Service Ends Today – Trolley Cars Stay On|page=11|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/37690631/park_row_station_march_5_1944/|access-date=October 22, 2019|via=newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174404/https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/37690631/park-row-station-march-5-1944/|url-status=live}}</ref> and the [[City Hall station (IRT Second Avenue Line)|City Hall station]] of the [[Interborough Rapid Transit Company]] (closed 1953).<ref>{{Cite news|last=Baker|first=Richard T.|date=January 1, 1954|title=City Hall 'El' Spur at End of the Line; Branch, Operating Since 1879, Makes Its Last Run With Only Token Fanfare|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1954/01/01/archives/city-hall-el-spur-at-end-of-the-line-branch-operating-since-1879.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174359/https://www.nytimes.com/1954/01/01/archives/city-hall-el-spur-at-end-of-the-line-branch-operating-since-1879.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

After the Municipal Building was finished, New Chambers Street ran through [[#Base|the building's central archway]]. Park Row bounded the building to the southeast and Duane Street abutted it to the northeast. Park Row was rerouted in the mid-20th century, and New Chambers and Duane Streets were closed in 1971 as part of the construction of 1 Police Plaza.<ref name="nyt19710706">{{Cite news|date=July 6, 1971|title=New Brooklyn Bridge Car Routes|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1971/07/06/archives/new-brooklyn-bridge-car-routes.html|access-date=May 18, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=August 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819232815/https://www.nytimes.com/1971/07/06/archives/new-brooklyn-bridge-car-routes.html|url-status=live}}</ref> These streets subsequently became part of a pedestrian plaza surrounding the Municipal Building and 1 Police Plaza.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Goldberger|first=Paul|date=October 27, 1973|title=New Police Building|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/10/27/archives/new-police-building-design-of-headquarters-is-described-as-being.html|access-date=May 18, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=August 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200820074559/https://www.nytimes.com/1973/10/27/archives/new-police-building-design-of-headquarters-is-described-as-being.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Architecture==
[[William M. Kendall]] of the architectural firm [[McKim, Mead & White]] designed the Municipal Building.<ref name="aia4">{{cite AIA4|page=71}}</ref><ref name="NPS p. 32">{{harvnb|National Park Service|1972|ps=.|p=3}}</ref> Two of the firm's other partners, Burt L. Fenner and Teunis J. van der Bent, were tasked with leading construction, while the city's Department of Bridges supervised the project. Alexander Johnson was chief engineer, and [[Purdy and Henderson]] were consulting engineers.<ref name="LC pp. 368-370" /> In addition, the [[Thompson–Starrett Co.|Thompson–Starrett Company]] was the general contractor.<ref name="LC pp. 368-370">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|pp=368&ndash;370}}</ref><ref name="TL pp. 38–39">{{harvnb|Tauranac|1985|ps=.|pages=38–39}}</ref> The Mount Waldo Construction Company provided the granite,<ref>{{Cite news|date=March 3, 1910|title=Gets $2,500,000 Contract.; Receivership Ended, Will Supply Granite for New Municipal Building.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/03/03/archives/gets-2500000-contract-receivership-ended-will-supply-granite-for.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174359/https://www.nytimes.com/1910/03/03/archives/gets-2500000-contract-receivership-ended-will-supply-granite-for.html|url-status=live}}</ref> while Robert Wetherill & Co. installed the original elevators.<ref>{{Cite news|date=May 24, 1912|title=City Building Elevators.; Robert Wetherill & Co. to Install Them for $465,400.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1912/05/24/archives/city-building-elevators-robert-wetherill-co-to-install-them-for.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174359/https://www.nytimes.com/1912/05/24/archives/city-building-elevators-robert-wetherill-co-to-install-them-for.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The foundations were dug by the Foundation Company.<ref name="rer19091225">{{cite magazine|date=December 25, 1909|title=The Substructure of the Municipal Building|url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_044_26.pdf|journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide|volume=84|pages=1159–1160|access-date=June 14, 2020|via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]]|number=2180|archive-date=October 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191011040509/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_044_26.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The building's [[architectural style]], influential in the civic construction of other American cities, has been "variously described as [[Ancient Roman architecture|Roman Imperial]], [[Renaissance architecture|Italian Renaissance]], [[French Renaissance architecture|French Renaissance]], or [[Beaux-Arts architecture|Beaux-Arts]]", according to architectural writers [[Sarah Landau]] and [[Carl W. Condit]].<ref name="LC p. 374">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=374}}</ref> Its construction marked the end of the [[City Beautiful movement]] in New York.<ref name="aia4" />

The Municipal Building is one of the largest governmental buildings in the world, with about {{convert|1|e6ft2}} of interior space and 2,000 employees.<ref name="NYDCAS" /> Of this, about {{Convert|600,000|ft2||abbr=}} is used for offices.<ref name="rer19091225" /><ref name="nyt19110521">{{Cite news|date=May 21, 1911|title=Sectional View of the New Municipal Building; Intricacies of the Huge Structure Shown, and the Approaches to the Subways Connecting with the Bridges Plainly Indicated|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1911/05/21/archives/sectional-view-of-the-new-municipal-building-intricacies-of-the.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174359/https://www.nytimes.com/1911/05/21/archives/sectional-view-of-the-new-municipal-building-intricacies-of-the.html|url-status=live}}</ref>{{efn|According to architectural historians [[Sarah Landau]] and [[Carl Condit]], when the Municipal Building was completed, it contained {{Convert|1,250,000|ft2||abbr=}} of usable space.<ref name="LC p. 368" />}} The Municipal Building was the first in New York City to incorporate a [[New York City Subway|subway]] station, the [[Chambers Street station (BMT Nassau Street Line)|Chambers Street station]], below its base.<ref name="nycland">{{cite nycland|page=33}}</ref><ref name="Emporis2">{{cite web |title=Manhattan Municipal Building |url=https://www.emporis.com/buildings/115520/manhattan-municipal-building-new-york-city-ny-usa |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200202182126/https://www.emporis.com/buildings/115520/manhattan-municipal-building-new-york-city-ny-usa |archive-date=February 2, 2020 |access-date=May 15, 2020 |publisher=Emporis}}</ref> The approved building plans in 1909 also called for three basement levels within the volume not occupied by the subway station.<ref name="tribune19091130">{{cite news |date=November 30, 1909 |title=Municipal Building: Revised Plans for Structure Approved by Board |page=8 |work=New-York Tribune |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51282704/ |url-status=live |access-date=May 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174406/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51282704/revised-plans-for-structure-approved-by/ |archive-date=April 24, 2022 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> The building features various types of sculpture and relief. These include the large gilded ''Civic Fame'' statue at the top of the building; smaller sculptural groups; and plaques and coats-of-arms representing the various governments that have ruled Manhattan.<ref name="NYDCAS" /><ref name="LC p. 374" /><ref name="nycland" />

=== Form ===
[[File:Municipal Building Facade - New York City.jpg|thumb|right|Seen from below]]
The building is shaped like a ten-sided "C",<ref name="LC p. 370">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=370}}</ref> although the lot that it occupies is an irregular hexagon.<ref name="NYCityMap" /> The main facade, along Centre Street to the west, is {{Convert|381|ft||abbr=}} long, while the eastern facade is {{Convert|168|ft||abbr=}} long. The building has a width of {{Convert|168.5|ft||abbr=}}, measured from west to east.<ref name="nyt19081029">{{Cite news|date=October 29, 1908|title=Municipal Building Plans; Mammoth Structure to Cost $8,000,000 -- With Tower It Will Be 559 Feet High|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1908/10/29/archives/municipal-building-plans-mammoth-structure-to-cost-8000000-with.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174400/https://www.nytimes.com/1908/10/29/archives/municipal-building-plans-mammoth-structure-to-cost-8000000-with.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="LC p. 370" /> The northeastern and southeastern sides accommodated the diagonal paths of Duane Street and Park Row, respectively.<ref name="sun19080503">{{cite news|date=May 3, 1908|title=City's New Skyscraper|page=41|work=New York Sun|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51163009/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174405/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51163009/citys-new-skyscraper/|url-status=live}}</ref> The floors' north–south axes are longer than their west–east axes; the wings of the "C" face west.<ref name="NYCityMap" /><ref name="nyt19081029" /><ref name="NPS p. 2">{{harvnb|National Park Service|1972|ps=.|p=2}}</ref> This floor plan ensured that all of the building's windows would be able to receive direct sunlight and eliminated the need for an interior [[light court]].<ref name="nyt19110521" /><ref name="p574858186">{{cite news |date=10 Dec 1911 |title=Decorative of the City's Detail New Work Shop |page=41 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|574858186}}}}</ref><ref name="TL pp. 37–38">{{harvnb|Tauranac|1985|ps=.|pages=37–38}}</ref>

The Manhattan Municipal Building is 34 stories tall; the main structure consists of 26 stories, and a tower rises eight stories above the center of the structure.<ref name="nyt19110521" />{{efn|According to architectural historian [[Leland M. Roth]], the main structure is 24 stories high while the tower is an additional nine stories.<ref name="Roth pp. 337, 339"/>}} The top of the main structure is about {{Convert|349|ft||abbr=}} above ground level.<ref name="Emporis2"/><ref name="Walton p. 135">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|p=135}}</ref> The tower rises to around {{Convert|560|ft||abbr=}} above ground level; including the ''Civic Fame'' statue, the building stands at around {{Convert|580|ft||abbr=}} tall.<ref name="Emporis2"/><ref name="Civic Fame">{{cite web |date=March 4, 2016 |title=Civic Fame |url=http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcas/html/about/civicfame.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304200909/http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcas/html/about/civicfame.shtml |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |access-date=May 16, 2020 |publisher=[[New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services]]}}</ref><ref name="p509684783">{{cite news |date=27 May 1916 |title=New York's Municipal Building Symbolizes Ideals of a Great City |page=15 |work=The Christian Science Monitor |id={{ProQuest|509684783}}}}</ref>{{efn|Marina Harrison and Lucy D. Rosenfeld cite the building's height as being {{cvt|582|ft}},<ref name="Artwalks"/> while William Walton wrote in 1912 that the building was {{cvt|583|ft}} tall.<ref name="Walton p. 133">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|p=133}}</ref> Roth quotes the height as being {{cvt|320|ft}} to the cornice and {{cvt|552|ft}} to the top of ''Civic Fame''.<ref name="Roth pp. 337, 339">{{harvnb|Roth|1983|ps=.|pp=337, 339}}</ref> A contemporary ''New York Times'' article cites the building as being {{cvt|559|ft||abbr=}} tall.<ref name="nyt19081029"/>}} Atop the northern and southern wings of the "C" are pavilion roofs, which are connected to the central tower with roof decks and a stone cornice. The central tower is composed of a two-story square section.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /> Atop this is a circular section flanked by four circular turrets, one above each corner of the square.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /><ref name="Walton p. 135" /> The circular section of the central tower is composed of two layers: an enclosed space surrounded by columns, atop which is a smaller [[peristyle]].<ref name="NPS p. 2" />

==== ''Civic Fame'' ====
[[File:Civic Fame - David N. Dinkins Municipal Building.jpg|thumb|The statue "Civic Fame" on the top of Manhattan's David N. Dinkins Municipal Building]]
[[File:2008-05-04 CanonS3 IMG 3076 Civic Fame crop.jpg|thumb|The gilded statue of ''Civic Fame'' at the top]]
On the Municipal Building's roof is ''Civic Fame'', a {{convert|25|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} statue installed in March 1913. The statue is a [[Gilding|gilded]] [[copper]] figure, made from about 500 pieces of hammered copper executed by the Manhattan firm of Broschart & Braun.<ref name="Civic Fame" /><ref name="Artwalks">{{cite book |last1=Harrison |first1=Marina |url=https://archive.org/details/artwalksnewyorkd00harr |title=Artwalks in New York : delightful discoveries of public art and gardens in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island |last2=Rosenfeld |first2=Lucy D. |publisher=New York University Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-8147-3661-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/artwalksnewyorkd00harr/page/n30 22]–23 |oclc=58842196 |quote=reporting that ''Civic Fame'' is "surprisingly, ... the largest statue in Manhattan. (No, the Statue of Liberty is not in Manhattan)." |url-access=limited}}</ref><ref name="tribune19130509" /> The statue is variously reported to be supported on an [[iron]] skeleton<ref name="Civic Fame" /> and made over a [[steel]] frame.<ref name="Artwalks" /> ''Civic Fame'' has been variously described as the [[Statues and sculptures in New York City|largest or second-largest statue in Manhattan]], depending on whether the larger [[Statue of Liberty]] is considered as being in Manhattan.<ref name="Artwalks" /><ref>{{cite book |last=Nesme |first=Axel |title=Wallace Stevens, New York, and Modernism |date=2012 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-138-65663-5 |editor-last=Goldfarb |editor-first=Lisa |chapter=On Stevensian Transitoriness |oclc=819507856 |quote=His gigantic gilded statue, ''Civic Fame'', still the second largest figurative statue in Manhattan |editor-last2=Eeckhout |editor-first2=Bart}}</ref> It is similar in style to the Statue of Liberty.<ref name="Civic Fame" />

The statue was designed by [[Adolph Alexander Weinman]] (1870–1952).<ref name="Civic Fame" /><ref name="Artwalks" /> It was [[Art commission|commissioned]] by the New York City government at a cost of $9,000 ({{inflation|fmt=eq|start_year=1913|index=US|value=9000|r=-3}})<ref name="nydn19740704" /><ref name="Roberts">{{cite book |last=Roberts |first=Sam |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofnewyork00robe |title=A History of New York in 101 Objects |publisher=Simon & Schuster |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-4767-2879-7 |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofnewyork00robe/page/122 122] |oclc=891696995 |url-access=limited}}</ref>{{efn|According to the ''New York Tribune'', the statue cost $6,000 ({{inflation|fmt=eq|index=US|start_year=1913|value=6000|r=-3}}), of which $1,000 was for the clothes and $5,000 for the statue.<ref name="tribune19130509" />|name=|group=}} to celebrate the [[City of Greater New York|consolidation of the five boroughs]] into the City of New York.<ref name="Civic Fame" /> The figure is barefoot and balances upon a [[globe]].<ref name="Artwalks" /><ref name="Roberts" /> She carries various symbolic items: a shield bearing the [[Seal of New York City|New York City coat of arms]], a branch of leaves, and a [[mural crown]], which she holds aloft. The mural crown has five [[crenellation]]s or [[Turret (architecture)|turret]]s, which evoke [[city wall]]s and represent the [[boroughs of New York City|five boroughs]].<ref name="Civic Fame" /><ref name="Artwalks" /><ref name="nyt19881204" /> The crown also includes [[dolphin]]s as a symbol of "New York's maritime setting".<ref name="Civic Fame" /> [[Audrey Munson]] posed for the figure;<ref name="Civic Fame" /><ref>{{cite web |date=July 5, 2004 |title=The Big Apple: Audrey Munson |url=http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/audrey_munson_new_yorks_civic_fame_and_miss_manhattan_san_franciscos_worlds/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702083444/http://barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/audrey_munson_new_yorks_civic_fame_and_miss_manhattan_san_franciscos_worlds |archive-date=July 2, 2014 |access-date=August 10, 2014 |publisher=Barry Popik}}</ref> she had also posed for a very large number of other important allegorical [[Beaux-Arts architecture|Beaux-Arts]] sculptures in New York, including those at the [[Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House]], [[New York Public Library Main Branch]], [[Manhattan Bridge#Arch and colonnade|Manhattan Bridge Colonnade]], and [[USS Maine National Monument|USS ''Maine'' National Monument]] at [[Columbus Circle]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Taylor |first=Norman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xbes8jtNZqYC |title=Cinematic Perspectives on Digital Culture: Consorting with the Machine |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan UK |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-137-28462-4 |pages=162–163 |access-date=May 16, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Rozas |first1=Diana |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lJ00eJEe2nIC |title=American Venus: The Extraordinary Life of Audrey Munson, Model and Muse |last2=Gottehrer |first2=Anita Bourne |publisher=Balcony Press |year=1999 |isbn=978-1-890449-04-9 |access-date=May 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910092508/https://books.google.com/books?id=lJ00eJEe2nIC |archive-date=September 10, 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The left arm was repaired in 1928 after cracks were detected on that side.<ref>{{Cite news |date=September 18, 1928 |title=Steeplejack Repairs Lofty 'Civic Pride'; Bronze Lady Atop Municipal Building Has Beauty Treatment as Folk Below Gape. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1928/09/18/archives/steeplejack-repairs-lofty-civic-pride-bronze-lady-atop-municipal.html |access-date=May 16, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> After ''Civic Fame's'' {{Convert|150|lb||abbr=|adj=on}} left arm broke off, fell through a skylight, and landed on the 26th-floor cafeteria in February 1935,<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 24, 1935 |title=Big Statue Breaks Atop City Offices; 150-Pound Piece Crashes From Peak of Municipal Building to Roof of Restaurant. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1935/02/24/archives/big-statue-breaks-atop-city-offices-150pound-piece-crashes-from.html |access-date=May 16, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=February 24, 1935 |title=Biting Winds Nip Arm Off Civic Fame |page=317 |work=New York Daily News |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51487966/ |access-date=May 15, 2020 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> the statue was renovated,<ref name="Civic Fame" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=February 27, 1935 |title=Civic Fame to be Tested; Repairs Are Planned to Statue on Municipal Building. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1935/02/27/archives/civic-fame-to-be-tested-repairs-are-planned-to-statue-on-municipal.html |access-date=May 16, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> with metal rods being used to hold up the left arm.<ref name="nydn19911012" /> The sculpture was refurbished and re-gilded starting in July 1974 at a cost of $294,500, as part of the interior renovations of the Municipal Building;<ref name="nydn19740704" /> the restoration was completed by the end of the year.<ref>{{cite news |last=Fallon |first=Beth |date=December 25, 1974 |title=Our 'Civic Fame' Is Sprung From Her Gilded Cage |page=333 |work=New York Daily News |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51477747/ |access-date=May 15, 2020 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="nyt19741225">{{Cite news |last=Johnston |first=Laurie |date=December 25, 1974 |title=City Statue Gets a Gold Coating |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/12/25/archives/city-statue-gets-a-gold-coating-civic-fame-glow-now-at-municipal.html |access-date=May 16, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> In early 1991, while the facade was undergoing renovations, ''Civic Fame'' was removed for six months and re-gilded by New Jersey metalwork shop Les Metalliers Champenois.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sullivan |first=Joseph F. |date=March 25, 1993 |title=Paterson Journal; Lured by Lady Liberty, French Artisans Stay On |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/03/25/nyregion/paterson-journal-lured-by-lady-liberty-french-artisans-stay-on.html |url-status=live |access-date=May 4, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180117205139/http://www.nytimes.com/1993/03/25/nyregion/paterson-journal-lured-by-lady-liberty-french-artisans-stay-on.html |archive-date=January 17, 2018 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> After the restoration was completed at a cost of $900,000, ''Civic Fame'' was reinstalled in October 1991.<ref name="Roberts" /><ref name="nydn19911012" />

=== Facade ===
The building is divided vertically into 25 [[Bay (architecture)|bays]] on its western elevation; 25 bays combined across the northeastern, southeastern, and eastern elevations; and three bays on its northern and southern elevations. Each bay contains either one or two windows on each story.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /> The facade is made of [[ashlar]] granite, except for the details above the 23rd floor, which are made of terracotta.<ref name="LC p. 374" /> A three-story [[colonnade]] of [[Corinthian column]]s runs across the base along Centre Street, and the rest of the building is set back behind the colonnade.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /><ref name="Walton p. 134">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|p=134}}</ref> The colonnade averages {{convert|66|ft}} tall, including pedestals,<ref name="Walton p. 134" /> and is topped by a carved [[entablature]].<ref name="NPS p. 32"/> The central portion of the colonnade is freestanding and is flanked by 16 three-quarter columns, each measuring about {{convert|6|ft}} wide and {{convert|52|ft}} tall.<ref name="p509684783" /> Early plans called for statuary above the colonnade, similar to the statuary above [[St. Peter's Basilica]].<ref name="TL p. 38">{{harvnb|Tauranac|1985|ps=.|page=38}}</ref> There is also a false colonnade on the facade above the 22nd floor.<ref name="NYDCAS" />

Weinman sculpted the rectangular allegorical [[bas-relief]] panels at the base of the building, which are located above the side arches.<ref name="LC p. 374" /><ref name="p574858186" /><ref name="nycland" /> ''Civic Duty'', above the smaller arch to the right (south) of the center arch, shows a female representation of the city alongside a child holding the [[Seal of New York City|city seal]]. ''Civic Pride'', above the smaller arch to the left (north), depicted the city as a woman "receiving tribute from her citizens".<ref name="NYDCAS" /><ref name="Art Commission of the City of New York 1920 p. 77-IA1">{{cite book |author=Art Commission of the City of New York |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i40LAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA77-IA1 |title=Catalogue of the Works of Art Belonging to the City of New York |publisher=Gilliss Press |year=1920 |pages=77–78 |issue=v. 2}}</ref> These are respectively topped by medallions representing ''Progress'', a nude kneeling man with a torch in one hand and a winged sphere in the other, and ''Prudence'', a half-nude kneeling woman holding a mirror while a serpent is curled around her right arm.<ref name="Art Commission of the City of New York 1920 p. 77-IA1" /><ref name="p508342348">{{cite news |date=21 Oct 1911 |title=Art Commission Aims for Beauty in New Municipal Building: Much Ornamentation to Feature Exterior of Structure to Be Civic Center for New York City Panels and Medallions of the Facade Are Expected to Call Forth Much Praise When They Are Completed |page=21 |work=The Christian Science Monitor |id={{ProQuest|508342348}}}}</ref> The medallions each measure about {{convert|9|ft}} wide and are placed immediately below the colonnade's [[architrave]].<ref name="Walton p. 135" /> There are heroic-scaled winged figures in the [[spandrels]] above the main arch: ''Guidance'', a depiction of a female in the left spandrel, and ''Executive Power'', a depiction of a male in the right spandrel.<ref name="Art Commission of the City of New York 1920 p. 77-IA1" />

The colonnade is topped by a [[frieze]] averaging {{convert|64|ft}} high. The word "Manhattan" is inscribed on the frieze immediately above the three arches; it is flanked by inscriptions reading "New Amsterdam" and "New York".<ref name="Walton pp. 135–136">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|pp=135–136}}</ref> Shields relating to Manhattan's historical and current governance were also placed above the lower-story colonnade and 22nd-floor false colonnade.<ref name="NYDCAS" /><ref name="Walton p. 136" /> The shields represent the historical colony of [[New Amsterdam]] and the [[Province of New York]], as well as the present-day county, city, and state of New York (the county of New York being coextensive with the borough of Manhattan).<ref name="NYDCAS" /><ref name="p574858186" /><ref name="Walton p. 136">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|p=136}}</ref> The shields on the lower colonnade correspond with the tops of the columns.<ref name="Walton p. 136" /> On the facade itself, the second-story windows are flanked by six pairs of figures in [[relief]], representing the building's original occupants.<ref name="p508342348" /><ref name="Walton p. 136" />

=== Features ===

==== Base ====
{{Multiple image
|align=right
|direction=horizontal
|total_width=400
|image1=Municipal_Building_Arch.jpg
|caption1=The central arched vault, inspired by the Roman [[Arch of Constantine]]
|image2=Manhattan_Municipal_Building_3034848677_a09e975842b.jpg
|caption2=[[Guastavino tile|Guastavino ceiling tiles]] on the south arcade
}}
A large, arched [[Vault (architecture)|vaulted]] corridor is located at the center of the building's base, at the eastern end of Chambers Street, and is flanked by two smaller arched vaults.<ref name="NYCL-0079">{{cite web|title=Municipal Building|url=http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/0079.pdf|date=February 1, 1966|publisher=[[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]]|access-date=February 2, 2020|archive-date=October 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003115031/http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/0079.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The arch measures about {{Convert|50|ft}} tall and {{convert|35|ft}} wide.<ref name="Walton p. 135" /> It is designed in the [[Neoclassical architecture|neoclassical]] style like the [[Arch of Constantine]].<ref name="NYDCAS" /> The vault was large enough to accommodate New Chambers Street, which was closed in 1971 to make way for a pedestrian plaza in front of One Police Plaza and the Manhattan Municipal Building.<ref name="nyt19710706" /> The [[terracotta]] vault was modeled on the entrance of the [[Palazzo Farnese]] in [[Rome]],<ref name="nycland" /><ref name="LC p. 374" /> and was also called the "Gate of the City" after [[William Jean Beauley]] painted an image of the scene.<ref name="fednyc">{{Cite fednyc|page=101}}</ref> The vault separates the lobby into two sections, each with its own set of elevator banks.<ref name="NPS p. 32"/> The second through fifth stories are also divided into two portions by the vault.<ref name="tribune19130413">{{cite news|date=April 13, 1913|title=Finest Workshop in World for Father Knickerbocker|page=62|work=New-York Tribune|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51305500/|access-date=May 16, 2020|via=newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174403/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51305500/finest-workshop-in-world-for-father/|url-status=live}}</ref> When the Municipal Building opened, the vault created a [[wind tunnel]] effect, leading employees to nickname it the "Cave of the Winds".<ref name="p575195761">{{cite news |date=1 Feb 1914 |title=Forms a "Cave of the Winds": No Gentle Breezes Blow in the Archway of Municipal Building Gales Bowl Over Unwary Passersby City Employes Say a Railing There Would Help Them to Get to Work |page=C3 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575195761}}}}</ref>

As constructed, the first floor was devoted entirely to public space, with two open [[loggia]]s and the two portions of the lobby.<ref name="ABF p. 436">{{Cite magazine|date=1910|title=New York's New Municipal Building And Some Others|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.c041991257&view=1up&seq=447|journal=Architects' and Builder's Magazine|volume=42|pages=431|ref={{harvid|Architects' and Builder's Magazine|1910}}|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-date=January 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118090730/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.c041991257&view=1up&seq=447|url-status=live}}</ref> Underneath each loggia were two massive staircases leading to the mezzanine of the Chambers Street station. The staircase under the south loggia measured {{convert|64|ft}} wide and could accommodate 1,280 passengers per minute, while that under the north loggia was {{convert|43|ft}} wide and could accommodate 800 passengers per minute.<ref name="p572380190">{{cite news |date=13 Nov 1910 |title=Down in "the Big Hole": Huge Subway Station Will Underlie New Municipal Building |page=A3 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|572380190}}}}</ref> The loggia under the southern wing still exists, with staircases leading to the subway from both the north and south. It is supported by a set of columns and has a ceiling of white [[Guastavino tile]]s.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /><ref name="nycland" /><ref name="NYCL-0079" /> The loggia under the northern wing is no longer extant, having been enclosed.<ref name="LC p. 374" />

The Chambers Street subway station, served by the {{NYCS trains|Nassau north}}, consists of two levels below the building: the [[mezzanine]] and the platform level.<ref name="nyt19110521" /> The mezzanine connects with the [[Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall station]],<ref name="nyt19110521" /> which is served by the {{NYCS trains|Lexington}}.<ref>{{NYCS const|map}}</ref> The station opened in 1913<ref>{{Cite news|date=August 5, 1913|title=Passenger Killed On Loop's First Day ; Printer, Impatient at Delay in New Bridge Subway, Tries to Walk the Track.|language=en-US|page=2|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1913/08/05/archives/passenger-killed-on-loops-first-day-printer-impatient-at-delay-in.html|access-date=August 1, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=December 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217094510/https://www.nytimes.com/1913/08/05/archives/passenger-killed-on-loops-first-day-printer-impatient-at-delay-in.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and was intended as the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company's main subway terminal in Manhattan, but fell into disrepair after businesses moved uptown in the 1930s.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Kennedy|first=Randy|date=May 13, 2003|title=Tunnel Vision; They're Subway Experts. Take Their Word on What's Ugly.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/13/nyregion/tunnel-vision-they-re-subway-experts-take-their-word-on-what-s-ugly.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=January 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125030719/https://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/13/nyregion/tunnel-vision-they-re-subway-experts-take-their-word-on-what-s-ugly.html|url-status=live}}</ref> When the Municipal Building was completed, there were also supposed to be new station buildings for the adjacent elevated IRT and BRT stations, designed in the same architectural style. The tracks from the Chambers Street station would have also connected directly to the elevated tracks on the Brooklyn Bridge,<ref>{{cite news|date=January 28, 1912|title=Changes in Park Row Rapidly Take Shape|page=8|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/51194638/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174404/https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/51194638/changes-in-park-row-rapidly-take-shape/|url-status=live}}</ref> but the connection was never opened.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Small|first=Charles S|date=1957|title=The Railway of the New York and Brooklyn Bridge|journal=The Railway and Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin|issue=97|pages=18|issn=0033-8842|jstor=43520182}}</ref>

==== Structural features ====
While the layer of [[bedrock]] under the Municipal Building was quite close to the surface underneath the southern part of the building, the bedrock dropped to a depth of about {{Convert|180|ft||abbr=}} under the northern portion of the site, where it would be extremely difficult to dig [[Caisson (engineering)|caissons]].<ref name="rer19091225" /><ref name="bsu19091224">{{cite news|date=December 24, 1909|title=Sand Foundation Safe, Says Mayor|page=1|work=Brooklyn Standard Union|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51155728/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174403/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51155728/sand-foundation-safe-says-mayor/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="bde19091223">{{cite news|date=December 23, 1909|title=Cannot Find Bed Rock|page=1|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/51158390/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174404/https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/51158390/cannot-find-bed-rock/|url-status=live}}</ref>{{efn|Landau and Condit cite the bedrock depth as ranging between {{convert|136|and|178|ft}}.<ref name="LC p. 372"/> In a footnote, they cite a late-20th century publication as saying that the bedrock was {{convert|209|ft}} deep at the north end and {{convert|290|ft}} deep outside the lot. However, Landau and Condit say that contemporary publications, which extensively described the foundations' engineering, give a maximum depth of {{convert|178|ft}}.<ref name="LC p. 443"/>}} A layer of sand was present to a depth of {{Convert|130|ft||abbr=}}, while the average depth of the bedrock under the building was about {{Convert|144|ft||abbr=}}.<ref name="LC p. 372">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=372}}</ref> The contract for the foundations was the largest to be awarded for a single building in the United States, with {{Convert|140,000|yd3||abbr=}} being excavated at a cost of $1.5&nbsp;million.<ref name="nyt19110521" /><ref name="p507936186" />  The foundations incorporated {{Convert|50,000|yd3||abbr=}} of concrete for the piers, as well as 70,000 barrels of cement.<ref name="nyt19110521" />

The foundations also include 106 caissons;  the southern two-thirds of the site contain 68 caissons extend to the bedrock, while the northern third contains 38 caissons that only extend to the quicksand.<ref name="Walton p. 138">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|p=138}}</ref><ref name="p128344574">{{cite magazine |date=May 1, 1911 |title=New York's Municipal Building |magazine=Building Age |page=285 |id={{ProQuest|128344574}}}}</ref> The caissons range in size from {{convert|6.5|ft}} in diameter to {{convert|26|by|31|ft}} across,<ref name="Walton p. 139">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|p=139}}</ref> extending to an average depth of {{Convert|130|ft||abbr=}}.<ref name="rer19091225" /><ref name="nyt19110521" /> The maximum depth of the caissons was {{Convert|145|ft||abbr=}} below grade; for the northern part of the site, the Foundation Company built larger caissons resting on sand at a depth of {{Convert|74|ft||abbr=}}.<ref name="LC p. 373">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=373}}</ref> While the caissons under the southern two-thirds of the building carry {{Convert|15|ST/ft2||abbr=}}, the larger caissons under the northern third of the building carry only {{Convert|6|ST/ft2||abbr=}}.<ref name="rer19091225" /> Each caisson was positioned so that the columns above did not interfere with the subway station.<ref name="p572380190" />

The Municipal Building's frame had {{Convert|26,000|ST|LT t|abbr=}} of steel, which required 20 derricks to erect.<ref name="tribune19130413" /><ref>{{cite magazine|date=October 1, 1910|title=Material for the Municipal Building|url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_046_14.pdf|journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide|volume=86|pages=520|via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]]|number=2220|access-date=June 14, 2020|archive-date=October 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003115027/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_046_14.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The superstructure weighed a total of {{Convert|180,000|ST|LT t|abbr=}}.<ref name="tribune19130413" /> The above-ground walls, and half of the beams in the superstructure, were carried by steel-plate girders at the first floor, spanning the subway station. The girders were connected to other steel beams, which distributed the building's entire weight to the caissons. Each of the first-floor girders were about {{Convert|10|ft||abbr=}} deep and grouped in sets of two or three.<ref name="LC p. 374" /> The Municipal Building's largest girders, supporting the Chambers Street arch, were {{Convert|36|ft||abbr=}} long and up to {{Convert|11|ft||abbr=}} deep;<ref name="LC p. 374" /> these girders weighed as much as {{Convert|50|ST|LT t}}.<ref name="p128344574" /> Above the girders and caissons are 167 columns that rise through the upper stories.<ref name="Walton p. 138" /> The largest column in the superstructure measured {{convert|34|ft}} long and weighed {{convert|34|ST|LT t}}.<ref name="p128344574" />

==== Interior ====
Except for the fourth story, all of the upper floors were devoted to offices.<ref name="Walton p. 134" /> The elevator banks and stairs were on the eastern side of the building, while the offices were concentrated along the western side and on the north and south wings. There were four staircase shafts that extended the height of the building.<ref name="tribune19130413" /> In addition, 33 elevators were provided in the initial construction,<ref name="nyt19350116" /> though this number was later expanded to 37.<ref name="nyt19340106">{{Cite news|date=January 6, 1934|title=Levy Calls Lifts Unsafe In Municipal Building|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1934/01/06/archives/levy-calls-lifts-unsafe-in-municipal-building.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174403/https://www.nytimes.com/1934/01/06/archives/levy-calls-lifts-unsafe-in-municipal-building.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Of the original elevators, 32 were accessible from the lobby;<ref name="nyt19110521" /><ref name="tribune19130413" /><ref name="ABF p. 436" /><ref name="p507936186" /> they were grouped in two banks of 16 cabs each.<ref name="p509684783" /> Most of the elevators from the lobby traveled only to the 25th story, where a separate elevator connected the 25th through 37th floors.<ref name="tribune19130413" /> During the 1934 elevator replacements, eight of the elevator shafts were shortened to make way for office space.<ref name="nyt19350116" />

Because the basement is mostly taken up by the subway station, most of the mechanical equipment is located on the fourth floor.<ref name="p574858186" /><ref name="nyt19881204">{{Cite news|date=December 4, 1988|title=Steel Cocoon Heralds Municipal Building Face Lift|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/12/04/nyregion/steel-cocoon-heralds-municipal-building-face-lift.html|access-date=May 13, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=June 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200615133624/https://www.nytimes.com/1988/12/04/nyregion/steel-cocoon-heralds-municipal-building-face-lift.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Walton pp. 134–135">{{harvnb|Walton|1912|ps=.|pp=134–135}}</ref> As such, the fourth floor has a much lower ceiling than the other stories.<ref name="p574858186" /><ref name="Walton pp. 134–135" /> The basement contains some space for boilers,<ref name="p128344574" /> while the elevators are controlled by a dispatching room on the 26th floor.<ref name="rer19150123">{{cite magazine|date=January 23, 1915|title=Building Management|url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_055_30.pdf|journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide|volume=95|pages=146|via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]]|number=2445|access-date=June 14, 2020|archive-date=October 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003115050/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_055_30.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> There are also four emergency-exit staircases.<ref name="p507936186" />

Each story was constructed with either {{Convert|27000|ft2||abbr=}}<ref name="ABF p. 436" /> or {{convert|31000|ft2}} of rentable office space.<ref name="p507936186" /> The materials in the Municipal Building included {{Convert|400,000|ft2||abbr=}} of hollow-tile partitions, {{Convert|500,000|ft2||abbr=}} of cement flooring, {{Convert|60,000|ft2||abbr=}} of asphalt flooring in the vaults, {{Convert|340,000|ft2||abbr=}} of plastering, and {{Convert|160,000|ft2||abbr=}} of [[Yule marble]]. Other types of marble, such as [[Tennessee marble]], were used for decorative elements such as the baseboards of the rooms. Steel was painted to resemble wood, while wooden elements were only used for door and window frames. Most of the floors are made of cement, but the fifth floor, originally used for public hearings and the municipal reference library, had {{Convert|34,000|ft2||abbr=}} of cork flooring to reduce noise.<ref name="tribune19130413" /> In later years, the hallways and offices were re-clad in [[plasterboard]] and sectioned into small [[cubicle]]s, but the building retained such elements as its ornate marble bathrooms.<ref name="p278145943" />

==History==

=== Previous plans ===
By the late 19th century, New York City governmental functions had outgrown [[New York City Hall]].<ref name="LC p. 366">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=366}}</ref> At the time, the city government's agencies rented space in various buildings from [[Downtown Manhattan]] up to [[Midtown Manhattan]], with the number of such arrangements increasing by the year. In the 1884 annual report of the City of New York, mayor [[Franklin Edson]] declared that more space was urgently needed for governmental functions. He also noted that City Hall's "style of architecture was such that without marring its present symmetry, it couldn't be enlarged to the required extent."<ref name="NYDCAS">{{Cite web|title=The David N. Dinkins Manhattan Municipal Building|url=https://www1.nyc.gov/site/dcas/business/dcasmanagedbuildings/david-n-dinkins-manhattan-municipal-building.page|publisher=New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services|access-date=May 14, 2020|archive-date=September 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917050357/https://www1.nyc.gov/site/dcas/business/dcasmanagedbuildings/david-n-dinkins-manhattan-municipal-building.page|url-status=live}}</ref> Edson suggested buying [[280 Broadway]], at the corner with Chambers Street, for use by the city government.<ref name="LC pp. 366-367">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|pp=366&ndash;367}}</ref>

The government, desiring to cut down the amount of rent paid to private landlords, ultimately held four design competitions for a new, massive building that would be suitable to house many agencies under one roof.<ref name="NYDCAS" /> As early as 1885, a commission was empowered to look for plots of land where such a structure could be built,<ref>{{Cite news|date=March 25, 1885|title=A New Public Building.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1885/03/25/archives/a-new-public-building.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174403/https://www.nytimes.com/1885/03/25/archives/a-new-public-building.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and by 1887, authorities were considering erecting a structure adjacent to City Hall itself, in [[City Hall Park]].<ref name="LC p. 367">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=367}}</ref> Mayor [[Abram Hewitt]] appointed a commission to study suitable plans and plots of land in 1888,<ref>{{Cite news|date=January 29, 1888|title=The Bridge and the City; a Solution of Two Great Problems. the Loop System for Terminal Facilities and a Site for a New Municipal Building.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1888/01/29/archives/the-bridge-and-the-city-a-solution-of-two-great-problems-the-loop.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=September 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916203454/https://www.nytimes.com/1888/01/29/archives/the-bridge-and-the-city-a-solution-of-two-great-problems-the-loop.html|url-status=live}}</ref> although Hewitt opposed putting such a building anywhere except City Hall Park.<ref>{{Cite news|date=May 22, 1888|title=Sites for City Buildings; Their Selection Brings the Powers in Conflict. Mayor Hewitt Opposed to Building Anywhere Outside of Cityhall-Square.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1888/05/22/archives/sites-for-city-buildings-their-selection-brings-the-powers-in.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424174403/https://www.nytimes.com/1888/05/22/archives/sites-for-city-buildings-their-selection-brings-the-powers-in.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The commissioners of the Sinking Fund initially approved a municipal building east of the [[Tweed Courthouse]], at the park's northeastern corner.<ref>{{Cite news|date=February 6, 1889|title=New Municipal Building Wanted.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1889/02/06/archives/new-municipal-building-wanted.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> An [[architectural design competition]] was commenced for this new building,<ref name="LC p. 367" /> and seven architects submitted plans.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|date=July 4, 1890|title=The New Municipal Building.; a Committee Appointed to Select a Suitable Site.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1890/07/04/archives/the-new-municipal-building-a-committee-appointed-to-select-a.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=September 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916215125/https://www.nytimes.com/1890/07/04/archives/the-new-municipal-building-a-committee-appointed-to-select-a.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Charles B. Atwood]]'s winning proposal called for a pair of seven-story pavilions flanking City Hall.<ref name="Stern (1983) p. 61">{{harvnb|ps=.|Stern|Gilmartin|Massengale|1983|p=61}}</ref> The public generally opposed the idea of development in the park, and the plan was voted down by the [[New York State Senate]] in February 1890.<ref name="Stern (1983) p. 61"/><ref name="LC p. 367" /><ref>{{Cite news|date=February 26, 1890|title=The Municipal Building.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1890/02/26/archives/the-municipal-building.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=September 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916203456/https://www.nytimes.com/1890/02/26/archives/the-municipal-building.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The law authorizing the new building was modified in 1890 so that the new structure would be able to house other city agencies as well.<ref>{{cite web|date=May 11, 1976|title=Hall of Records Interior|url=http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/0926.pdf|access-date=September 15, 2020|publisher=[[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]]|page=1|archive-date=September 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916161713/http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/0926.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Mayor [[Hugh J. Grant]] proposed a large municipal office building in early 1890,<ref name="LC p. 367" /> and that July, a committee of the city government was created to look for alternate sites.<ref name=":0" /> The committee published a report in October 1890, outlining three possible sites on Chambers Street. The first option was southwest of Chambers Street and Broadway; the second, northwest of Chambers and Centre Streets; and the third, northeast of Chambers and Centre Streets (at the current building's location).<ref name="LC p. 367" /><ref name="rer18901018">{{cite magazine|date=October 18, 1890|title=A Site for the New Municipal Building|url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_006_17.pdf|journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide|volume=46|pages=507|via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]]|number=1179|access-date=August 7, 2020|archive-date=October 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003115126/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_006_17.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>{{efn|name=sites|The sites were: 
* A block to the northwest of City Hall, bounded by Warren Street to the south, Broadway to the east, Chambers Street to the north, and Church Street to the west. This would provide {{Convert|51600|ft2||abbr=|adj=on}} of floor area.<ref name="rer18901018"/>
* A lot to the northeast of City Hall, bounded by Chambers Street to the south, Centre Street to the east, Duane Street to the north, and [[49 Chambers]] to the west. This would provide {{Convert|49000|ft2||abbr=|adj=on}} of floor area.<ref name="rer18901018"/>
* A block to the northeast of City Hall, bounded by Chambers Street to the south, Centre Street to the west, and Duane Street to the northeast (the northern part of the current building's site).<ref name="rer18901018"/> This would provide {{Convert|55000|ft2||abbr=|adj=on}} of floor area.<ref name="LC p. 367" />}} The committee recommended the third option, which would be the cheapest and offer the most floor area, as well as provide an opportunity for redevelopment at that location.<ref name="LC p. 367" /><ref>{{cite magazine|date=November 22, 1890|title=The New Municipal Building|url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_006_24.pdf|journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide|volume=46|pages=685–686|via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]]|number=1184|access-date=August 7, 2020|archive-date=October 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003115022/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_006_24.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> However, the city government decided in March 1893 that the municipal building would instead replace City Hall, with two wings extending north to flank the Tweed Courthouse,<ref name="Stern (1983) p. 61"/><ref>{{Cite news|date=March 29, 1893|title=For the New City Hall; a Site Finally Agreed on by Committees. Their Decision to Be Reported to the Municipal Building Commission to-Morrow -- Lines of the Building as Proposed -- to Cost $4,000,000.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1893/03/29/archives/for-the-new-city-hall-a-site-finally-agreed-on-by-committees-their.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> despite the committee's recommendation and public objections to a City Hall site.<ref name="LC p. 367" /> The committee ultimately received 134 plans for such a new building,<ref name="Stern (1983) p. 61" /><ref>{{Cite news|date=September 8, 1893|title=To Open Municipal Building Plans.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1893/09/08/archives/to-open-municipal-building-plans.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=September 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916224048/https://www.nytimes.com/1893/09/08/archives/to-open-municipal-building-plans.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="LC p. 443">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=443}}</ref> with six of these being selected as finalists.<ref>{{Cite news|date=January 17, 1894|title=Plans for New Municipal Building.; Six Architects Who Did Best May Be Asked to Compete Again.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1894/01/17/archives/plans-for-new-municipal-building-six-architects-who-did-best-may-be.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=September 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916200312/https://www.nytimes.com/1894/01/17/archives/plans-for-new-municipal-building-six-architects-who-did-best-may-be.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In response to opposition to City Hall's demolition,<ref name="LC p. 367" /> the New York governor signed a law in 1894 that once again prohibited the municipal building's construction.<ref>{{Cite news|date=May 10, 1894|title=All Its Work to Naught; Mayor Gilroy Discusses Effect of City Hall Bill. New Municipal Building Commission In Existence, but May Not Have Power to Take Action|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1894/05/10/archives/all-its-work-to-naught-mayor-gilroy-discusses-effect-of-city-hall.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=September 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917021911/https://www.nytimes.com/1894/05/10/archives/all-its-work-to-naught-mayor-gilroy-discusses-effect-of-city-hall.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The six finalist submissions were supposed to receive monetary prizes,<ref>{{Cite news|date=May 4, 1895|title=To Pay the Architects' Prizes; Mayor Approves the Bill Respecting Municipal Building Awards.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1895/05/04/archives/to-pay-the-architects-prizes-mayor-approves-the-bill-respecting.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|date=February 22, 1896|title=The Municipal Building Plans|url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_017_8.pdf|journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide|volume=57|pages=296|via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]]|number=1458|access-date=June 14, 2020|archive-date=October 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003115009/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_017_8.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Stern (1983) p. 62">{{harvnb|Stern|Gilmartin|Massengale|1983|ps=.|p=62}}</ref>{{efn|[[John Rochester Thomas]], one of the finalists, was selected as the first-place contender in February 1896.<ref name="NCAB"/> He would be commissioned to design the [[Surrogate's Courthouse|Hall of Records]] on the committee's second-option site, at the northwest corner of Chambers and Centre Streets.<ref name="LC p. 443" /><ref name="NCAB">{{cite book | title=The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography | chapter=Thomas, John Rochester | issue=v. 9 | year=1899 | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nl8oAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA329 | page=329 | access-date=September 15, 2020 | archive-date=September 28, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928191632/https://books.google.com/books?id=nl8oAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA329 | url-status=live }}</ref>}} but ran into difficulty even collecting their awards, since the city had never formally accepted the committee's report on the finalists.<ref name="Stern (1983) p. 62" />

In 1899, architect [[George B. Post]] proposed a municipal office tower to be built at the northeast corner of Chambers and Centre Streets, while preserving City Hall, as part of a greater plan to rearrange Lower Manhattan's streets.<ref name="LC p. 367" /><ref name="Stern (1983) p. 64">{{harvnb|Stern|Gilmartin|Massengale|1983|ps=.|p=64}}</ref> The next March, state senator [[Patrick H. McCarren]] proposed a bill that would construct the municipal building on the blocks bounded by Broadway and Reade, Centre, and Chambers Streets, north of the Tweed Courthouse and west of the current building's site. The structure would replace [[280 Broadway]] and the old [[49 Chambers#History|Emigrant Industrial Savings Bank Building]], incorporate the then-under-construction Hall of Records, and would also entail destroying the Tweed Courthouse.<ref>{{Cite news|date=March 11, 1900|title=Great Municipal Building Scheme; Space for All Courts and Offices of City and County|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1900/03/11/archives/great-municipal-building-scheme-space-for-all-courts-and-offices-of.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191007083657/https://www.nytimes.com/1900/03/11/archives/great-municipal-building-scheme-space-for-all-courts-and-offices-of.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Several architects submitted proposals, the most elaborate of which was by [[McKim, Mead & White]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=September 28, 1902|title=Plans Offered for Municipal Building; Architects Submit Scheme Which Would Clear City Hall Park. Only the Old Central Structure Would Be Left Standing, That to be Used as a Museum.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1902/09/28/archives/plans-offered-for-municipal-building-architects-submit-scheme-which.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=March 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180307061149/https://www.nytimes.com/1902/09/28/archives/plans-offered-for-municipal-building-architects-submit-scheme-which.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, in 1903, the city's bridge commissioner [[Gustav Lindenthal]] hired George Post and [[Henry Hornbostel]] as architects for a planned [[Tram|trolley]] hub at the foot of the [[Brooklyn Bridge]], just east of City Hall. This plan also involved constructing a 45-story municipal office tower with a campanile at Chambers and Centre Streets.<ref name="Stern (1983) p. 64" /><ref name="LC pp. 287-288">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|pp=287&ndash;288}}</ref> The site would have cost $6.7 million.<ref name="TL p. 35">{{harvnb|Tauranac|1985|ps=.|page=35}}</ref>  The municipal building and trolley hub plans were deferred by the administration of mayor [[Seth Low]] when he left office at the end of 1903.<ref>{{Cite news|date=December 2, 1903|title=Defers Big Improvements; Present Administration to Let Its Successor Begin Them. No Action on Plans for Municipal Building, Court House, and Fifty-ninth Street Widening.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1903/12/02/archives/defers-big-improvements-present-administration-to-let-its-successor.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

=== Planning and construction ===

==== Architectural design competition ====
{{multiple image
| align = right
| direction = horizontal
| image1 = Municipal Building New York.jpg
| width1 = 169
| caption1 = Under construction, {{circa|1912}}
| image2 = Colin Campbell Cooper, Chambers Street and the Municipal Building, N.Y.C.jpg
| width2 = 180
| caption2 = ''Chambers Street and the Municipal Building'' by [[Colin Campbell Cooper]], c. 1922
| total_width =
| alt1 =
}}

By early 1907, the Hall of Records had been completed, but there was still not enough space for the city's important files; further, the city was paying large amounts for rent in private buildings. Officials pointed out that the cramped quarters of the city government's departments posed a fire hazard, and legislation had been proposed for a new municipal building.<ref>{{cite news|date=April 28, 1907|title=Important City Records in Perpetual Danger of Fire|page=54|work=New-York Tribune|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51304245/|access-date=May 16, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> In July 1907, Lindenthal—who had already secured a new plot of land for the Brooklyn Bridge trolley hub—was authorized by the state legislature to host a fourth and final design competition for the municipal building.<ref name="LC p. 367" /><ref>{{cite news|date=July 23, 1907|title=Bill for Municipal Building Signed|page=3|work=Wall Street Journal|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/129042646/76DBFDA4D1044BEBPQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0099-9660|via=ProQuest}}</ref> The [[BMT Brooklyn Loops|Brooklyn loop line]], a four-track subway line, was planned to be built under the site as well,<ref>{{Cite news|date=January 26, 1907|title=Subway Loop Approved; Will Have Four Tracks|language=en-US|page=16|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1907/01/26/archives/subway-loop-approved-will-have-four-tracks.html|access-date=August 1, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=July 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718114459/https://www.nytimes.com/1907/01/26/archives/subway-loop-approved-will-have-four-tracks.html|url-status=live}}</ref> passing through a large five-platform station at Chambers Street.<ref>{{cite news|last=Stevenson|first=Frederick Boyd|date=July 13, 1913|title=Colonel Williams' View of Centre Street Loop|page=23|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|url=http://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/53150172/|access-date=October 2, 2018|via=Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com|archive-date=October 2, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002064741/http://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/53150172/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Twelve<ref name="TL p. 35" /> or thirteen architects were invited to compete.<ref name="LC p. 367" /> They would in turn elect a jury of three architects, whose names would not be published in advance. The Commissioner of Bridges would make a final decision based on the jury's recommendation.<ref name="LC p. 367" /> The building had to be at least 20 stories; the superstructure could not block train tracks, stairways, or [[Railway platform|platforms]]; the route of Chambers Street under the building had to be preserved; and the first floor, to be used for transit and building entrances, had to be completely covered, with a ceiling of at least {{Convert|20|ft||abbr=}}. The commissioner also recommended that the first story of each level be at ground level, and that an above-ground level be provided for mechanical equipment and building systems.<ref name="LC pp. 367-368">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|pp=367&ndash;368}}</ref> The contestants were otherwise given "considerable freedom" for the building's design.<ref name="LC p. 368">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|p=368}}</ref> By December 1907, several architects had submitted plans.<ref>{{Cite news|date=December 17, 1907|title=City to Build Skyscraper; Jury to Select Plans for New Municipal Building Will Be Chosen To-day.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1907/12/17/archives/city-to-build-skyscraper-jury-to-select-plans-for-new-municipal.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Twelve architectural firms ultimately entered the competition, while [[Cass Gilbert]] withdrew.<ref name="LC p. 443" />

The jury selected McKim, Mead & White's proposal in April 1908.<ref name="sun19080503" /><ref>{{Cite news|date=April 29, 1908|title=Municipal Building Award; Jury Selects Plans Submitted by McKim, Mead & White.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1908/04/29/archives/municipal-building-award-jury-selects-plans-submitted-by-mckim-mead.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="tribune19080503">{{cite news|date=May 3, 1908|title=City to Lodge in a Skyscraper|page=57|work=New-York Tribune|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51159239/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com|archive-date=April 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424005622/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51159239/city-to-lodge-in-a-skyscraper/|url-status=live}}</ref> The firm's design provided the most space for the city government,<ref name="LC p. 368" /><ref name=":5" /> and it was similar in style to other municipal buildings of the time. The proposal included offices facing outward on all sides, a colonnade, a monument at the top, and a subway station in the basement.<ref name="TL pp. 37–38" /> The winning design was less elaborate than some of the other submissions.<ref name="LC p. 368" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite news|date=April 29, 1908|title=23 Story Municipal Building|page=1|work=New York Sun|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56886096/|access-date=August 7, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> such as the runner-up proposal by [[Howells & Stokes]], inspired by [[90 West Street]].<ref name="TL p. 35" /><ref name="LC p. 368" /> McKim, Mead & White had entered the contest under the encouragement of mayor [[George B. McClellan Jr.]]<ref name="Roth p. 337">{{harvnb|Roth|1983|ps=.|p=337}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> The firm's senior partners had been noncommittal about participating in the competition,<ref name="Roth p. 337" /> though they named junior partner [[William Mitchell Kendall]] as the principal architect of the submission.<ref name=":1">Willis, Carol. "Municipal Building" in {{cite enc-nyc2|pages=863–864}}</ref>

Originally, the building was to have risen {{convert|448|ft}}, with 23 stories.<ref name="TL p. 38" /> The firm revised its plans in 1908, adding two stories and lengthening the spire so the building stood {{Convert|559|ft|||abbr=|adj=}}.<ref name="nyt19081029" /><ref name="TL p. 38" /> The modified plans were submitted to the [[New York City Department of Buildings]] in October 1908.<ref name="nyt19081029" /> The city had initially intended to erect the Manhattan Municipal Building on a plot immediately to the south of the current site, bounded by Park Row, the Brooklyn Bridge, and North William Street.<ref>{{cite news|date=April 17, 1909|title=Has No Use for Block|page=9|work=New-York Tribune|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51128261/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> The final plan called for the building to be located between Park Row, Centre Street, and Duane Street, with Chambers Street running under the Municipal Building's center.<ref name="tribune19080503" /> The city government planned to occupy 11 of the building's 23 stories.<ref name="p910532099" /><ref name="tribune19080503" />

==== Construction ====
[[File:King's Color-graphs of New York City3.jpg|thumb|A depiction of the building in 1910, prior to its completion]]
By late 1908, the site was being cleared.<ref>{{cite news|date=October 18, 1908|title=Work for Many Hands|pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51129948/ 18], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51130110/ 19], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51130220/ 22]|work=New-York Tribune|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Bids for foundation work were opened in December 1908,<ref>{{cite news|date=December 4, 1908|title=Bids for Bridge Terminal|page=4|work=New-York Tribune|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51163948/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> and the contract was awarded to the J. H. Gray Company.<ref name="LC pp. 372-373">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|pp=372&ndash;373}}</ref> The original building plans were rejected by the city's buildings superintendent the same month because he felt that the underlying layer of soil and sand was not strong enough to carry the building.<ref name="LC pp. 372-373" /><ref>{{Cite news|date=December 25, 1908|title=Disapproves Plans for City Building; Supt. Murphy Refuses to be Responsible for Big Structure on Soil Foundation|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1908/12/25/archives/disapproves-plans-for-city-building-supt-murphy-refuses-to-be.html|access-date=May 14, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p572220279">{{cite news |date=26 Dec 1908 |title=Subway Club Manager Held Call Plans Dangerous: Delay to Subway, Loop Engineers Say Municipal Building Built as Planned Would Be Unsafe |page=11 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|572220279}}}}</ref> The architects did not want to spend another $300,000 just so the foundation would extend down to the bedrock.<ref name="TL p. 38" /> This resulted in delays in the construction of the proposed Brooklyn loop line under the building.<ref name="tribune19090318">{{cite news |date=March 18, 1909 |title=Down to Bed Rock |pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51134150/ 1], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51134416/ 2] |work=New-York Tribune |via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=May 26, 1909|title=Puts up Delay of Loop to Board of Estimate|page=3|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/51112897/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=May 22, 1909|title=Bridge Loop Soon Ready.; but Can't Be Used for at Least Two Years|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1909/05/22/archives/bridge-loop-soon-ready-but-cant-be-used-for-at-least-two-years.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Ultimately, the Foundation Company was contracted to dig the foundation with caissons under a very high air pressure of {{Convert|47|psi||abbr=}}.<ref name="rer19091225" /><ref name="LC p. 373" /> Work was done in 20 shifts of five men working for forty minutes each day; only two workers developed [[decompression sickness]] and neither of them died.<ref name="LC pp. 373-374">{{harvnb|Landau|Condit|1996|ps=.|pp=373&ndash;374}}</ref> In a January 1909 speech, McClellan praised the project as "one of the most important projects the City has ever undertaken". At the time, he predicted that the building would cost $8 million.<ref name="LC p. 370" /><ref>{{cite book|last=Stokes|first=Isaac Newton Phelps|url=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/cul/texts/ldpd_5800727_005/pages/ldpd_5800727_005_00001197.html|title=The iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498-1909|year=1915|volume=5|page=2073|access-date=August 3, 2020|via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

Work on the Municipal Building officially started on July 17, 1909.<ref>{{Cite news|date=July 18, 1909|title=A Mammoth Building to Cost Many Millions.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1909/07/18/archives/a-mammoth-building-to-cost-many-millions.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> One observer predicted that the building's construction would result in an increase in real-estate values, similar to what the [[Flatiron Building]] had done for the [[Flatiron District]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=June 27, 1909|title=New Municipal Building to Create Centre of Business and Transportation; Great Changes to be Wrought in Section Around Proposed City Structure -Effect on Neighboring Property -- A New "Flatiron" Planned.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1909/06/27/archives/new-municipal-building-to-create-centre-of-business-and.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Foundation work was completed in October 1909,<ref name="LC p. 374" /> when the [[New York City Art Commission]] approved the plans.<ref name="p507988049">{{cite news |date=27 Oct 1909 |title=Art Body Approves Plans of New York Municipal Building: Work on the New Ten-million-dollar Structure Near the Old City Hall is Now Well Under Way |page=6 |work=The Christian Science Monitor |id={{ProQuest|507988049}}}}</ref><ref name="p572255570">{{cite news |date=17 Oct 1909 |title=For New City Building: Art Commission Approves Plans for $10,000,000 Structure |page=5 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|572255570}}}}</ref> The Board of Estimate approved a revised building plan that November.<ref name="tribune19091130" /> Bids for the construction of the superstructure were opened on December 21, but an [[injunction]] against the awarding of the contract was placed less than an hour after the bidding process started, after a lawsuit was filed over the fireproofing material that was supposed to be used in the building.<ref>{{Cite news|date=December 21, 1909|title=New City Building Contract Held Up; Citizens' Union President Obtains an Injunction Against the Awarding of It|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1909/12/21/archives/new-city-building-contract-held-up-citizens-union-president-obtains.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p572328032">{{cite news |date=21 Dec 1909 |title=Halt on Building: Writ Stops Award Schieffelin's Injunction Checks Work on Municipal Structure |page=14 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|572328032}}}}</ref> Furthermore, the presence of the sand supposedly posed issues for the superstructure,<ref name="TL p. 38" /><ref name="bde19091223" /> though McClellan said that he believed it was safe to build on sand.<ref name="bsu19091224" /> McClellan laid the building's {{Convert|4|ST|LT t|abbr=|adj=on}} [[cornerstone]] on December 28;<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |date=December 28, 1909 |title=New City Building Cornerstone Laid; Mayor Holds the Ceremony While the Contract Injunction Case Is Gong On |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1909/12/28/archives/new-city-building-cornerstone-laid-mayor-holds-the-ceremony-while.html |access-date=May 15, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p128410044">{{Cite magazine |date=Jan 1, 1910 |title=New York's New City Hall: Corner Stone Laid Monday by Mayor Mcclellan--new Building Which Will Cost $6,000,000 Was Designed by Mckim, Mead & White |magazine=The Construction News |volume=29 |issue=1 |page=2 |id={{ProQuest|128410044}}}}</ref> unlike at other municipal projects, the ceremony was private, and the cornerstone only had the year "1907" inscribed in Roman numerals.<ref>{{cite news|date=December 21, 1909|title=Cornerstone Laying by Mayor to be Unique|page=3|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/51159927/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com}}</ref> The injunction was reversed when the cornerstone was laid.<ref name=":2" />

The Pennsylvania Steel Company was contracted in early 1910 to manufacture {{convert|25000|ST|LT t}} of structural steel for the Municipal Building.<ref name="p129284003">{{cite news |date=1 Jan 1910 |title=Large Steel Contract.: Pennsylvania Steel Co. Secures Contract for 25,000 Tons of Steel for Municipal Building. |page=2 |work=The Wall Street Journal |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|129284003}}}}</ref> Construction was interrupted by various incidents. Three workers were buried in June 1910 when temporary bracing in the foundation collapsed, though all survived;<ref>{{Cite news|date=June 4, 1910|title=Caught in Cave-in at City Building; Three Workmen Are Buried as Shoring Gives Way and Two Others Struck by Timbers.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/06/04/archives/caught-in-cavein-at-city-building-three-workmen-are-buried-as.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p572327752">{{cite news |date=4 Jun 1910 |title=Sandslide Buries Men: Two Quickly Released |page=16 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|572327752}}}}</ref> another cave-in occurred on Park Row in September 1910.<ref name="nyt-1910-09-04">{{Cite news |date=1910-09-04 |title=Park Row Cave-in Leaves Cars Tied Up; No Prospect of Regular Third Ave. Service Until Street Is Rebuilt |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/09/04/archives/park-row-cavein-leaves-cars-tied-up-no-prospect-of-regular-third.html |access-date=2023-04-13 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p572357621">{{cite news |date=4 Sep 1910 |title=Second Park Row Cave-in: Municipal Building Excavation Collapses, Blocking Traffic Car Tracks Undermined Third Avenue Elevated Train Stops Just Before Reaching Weakened Structure |page=3 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|572357621}}}}</ref> A fire broke out on the 25th floor in 1911, which at the time was the highest fire the [[New York City Fire Department]] had fought.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 29, 1911 |title=Firemen Put Out Highest Fire Yet; Quickly Extinguish a Blaze on the Twenty-fifth Floor of the New Municipal Building. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1911/06/29/archives/firemen-put-out-highest-fire-yet-quickly-extinguish-a-blaze-on-the.html |access-date=May 15, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>  Steel frame construction took place between June 1910 and July 1911, followed by the installation of exterior walls between March 1911 and November 1912. There were delays in installing the granite facade because the original materials were found to be inferior.<ref name="tribune19130413" /> By 1913, the superstructure was [[Topping out|topped out]] with the unveiling of ''Civic Pride'' at the top of the Municipal Building's tower.<ref name="tribune19130509">{{cite news|date=May 9, 1913|title=Civic Pride Disrobes on High|page=16|work=New-York Tribune|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51283904/|access-date=May 16, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref>

=== Use ===

==== 1910s and 1920s ====
{{Multiple image
|align=right
|direction=horizontal
|total_width=400
|image1=Municipal Building New York.JPG
|caption1=Rear view, from the [[Brooklyn Bridge]]
|image2=NY City Hall Chambers Street IMG 2039.JPG
|caption2=From [[Chambers Street (Manhattan)|Chambers Street]]
}}

The first sections of the Municipal Building were occupied in mid-1913.<ref>{{Cite news|date=December 14, 1913|title=City Offices Move to City Building; Floors Being Finished by Installments for Various Municipal Departments|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1913/12/14/archives/city-offices-move-to-city-building-floors-being-finished-by.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The building had not been ready at the beginning of the year, forcing some city departments to renew the leases at their existing quarters.<ref>{{Cite news|date=March 2, 1913|title=Must Renew Leases; Delay on Municipal Building Will Cost City $500,000.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1913/03/02/archives/must-renew-leases-delay-on-municipal-building-will-cost-city-500000.html|access-date=May 15, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The interiors were not finished until 1916.<ref name="TL p. 39">{{harvnb|Tauranac|1985|ps=.|page=39}}</ref> The building had cost $12&nbsp;million ({{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=12,000,000|start_year=1914|r=-3|fmt=eq}}), which was not repaid with [[interest]] until 1964; the interest was more than twice the original cost.<ref>{{Cite news|date=February 6, 1964|title=City Paying off 50-year Debts; $2,246,468 of $65,000,000 Total Is Last Installment on Municipal Building|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/02/06/archives/city-paying-off-50year-debts-2246468-of-650000o0-total-is-last.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The land alone had cost $6&nbsp;million. Nevertheless, the structure was expected to save the city from paying $800,000 a year in rent.<ref name="tribune19130413" /> Upon opening, the Municipal Building housed 4,200 city employees. It was patrolled by a private police force, which monitored the building 24 hours a day, as well as a cleaning crew of 135 people.<ref name="rer19150123" /> There were also [[telephone switchboard]]s for inter-departmental communication, which at the time of completion were described as state-of-the-art.<ref name="tribune19130413" /> When the building opened, it employed 500 women and 3,700 men.<ref name="p509684783" />

The structure was supposed to house most city agencies except the [[New York City Police Department|Police]], [[New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene|Health]], and [[New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|Parks]] departments, the Aqueduct Commission, and courts.<ref name="p128410044" /> The Parks Department moved to the Municipal Building shortly after the structure was completed;<ref name="p575190759">{{cite news |date=11 Mar 1914 |title=Park Dept. Downtown: to Be in Municipal Building--tribune's Report Confirmed |page=16 |work=New-York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575190759}}}}</ref> by 1916, the building also had a court that only heard cases in which the city government was involved.<ref name="nyt-1916-03-20">{{Cite news |date=1916-03-20 |title=New Court Today to Try City Cases; Magistrate Appleton Will Sit Permanently in the Municipal Building |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1916/03/20/archives/new-court-today-to-try-city-cases-magistrate-appleton-will-sit.html |access-date=2023-04-13 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Mayor [[John Purroy Mitchel]], after taking office in 1914, criticized the usage of space in the Municipal Building as "wasteful".<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |date=January 22, 1914 |title=New City Building Rouses Mayor's Ire; Asserts That $15,000,000 Structure Was 'Badly Planned' and "a Waste of Space." |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1914/01/22/archives/new-city-building-rouses-mayors-ire-asserts-that-15000000-structure.html |access-date=May 15, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Some of the city departments that were scheduled to move into the building had found space elsewhere, and other city departments had been allotted less space in the building than in their previous quarters;<ref name=":3" /> as such, only 28 percent of the space was originally occupied.<ref name="p509684783" /> By 1915, the building was fully occupied.<ref name="p509684783" /> The [[New York City Board of Estimate]] commenced an investigation into office vacancies at the Municipal Building in 1916 after the [[New York Public Service Commission]] leased floors in other buildings.<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 19, 1916 |title=City to Investigate Municipal Building; Board of Estimate Acts After P.S. Commission Leases Floors Downtown |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1916/02/19/archives/city-to-investigate-municipal-building-board-of-estimate-acts-after.html |access-date=May 16, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The layouts of the interiors were also criticized, even though the city had selected the design specifically of its interior layout.<ref name="TL p. 39" />

A nonprofit organization established a cafeteria on the 26th floor in 1918; although the city provided no subsidies to the cafeteria, the cafeteria also did not have to pay rent.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Clark|first=Alfred E.|date=December 3, 1969|title=Snack Carts Hurt a City Cafeteria; Municipal Building Facility Was Established in 1918|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1969/12/03/archives/snack-carts-hurt-a-city-cafeteria-municipal-building-facility-was.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Radio station [[WNYC (AM)]] started broadcasting from the 24th floor in 1924,<ref>{{Cite news|date=July 9, 1924|title=City's Radio Plant Opened by Mayor; His Speech Broadcast on 526-Meter Wave From Top of Municipal Building.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1924/07/09/archives/citys-radio-plant-opened-by-mayor-his-speech-broadcast-on-526meter.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p1113006906">{{cite news |date=9 Jul 1924 |title=Hylan Opens City's $50,000 Radio Station: Executive, Principal Speaker, Declares Information About His Administration Will Be Broadcast Five Offices in Plant On 25th Floor of Municipal Building, WCNY Is Model of Artistic Beauty |page=13 |work=The New York Herald, New York Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1113006906}}}}</ref> remaining there for 85 years,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Haberman|first=Clyde|date=June 6, 2008|title=After 84 Years, WNYC Cuts a Cord With the City as It Moves|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/06/nyregion/06nyc.html|access-date=May 18, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=June 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190630163833/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/06/nyregion/06nyc.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and a small hospital was established on the third floor in 1929.<ref>{{Cite news|date=July 6, 1929|title=Hospital for Municipal Building.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1929/07/06/archives/hospital-for-municipal-building.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The Municipal Building's size notwithstanding, various entities had proposed to build an even larger municipal skyscraper to the west by the 1930s, but with no success.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Dunlap|first=David W.|date=September 11, 1987|title=New York Rekindles Dream of a New Municipal Tower|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/11/nyregion/new-york-rekindles-dream-of-a-new-municipal-tower.html|access-date=May 18, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=November 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171102080221/http://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/11/nyregion/new-york-rekindles-dream-of-a-new-municipal-tower.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== 1930s to 1960s ====
[[File:Manhattan Municipal Building 3062160639 59d0c334ce.jpg|thumb|Cupola detail]]
By 1931, Manhattan borough president [[Samuel Levy (politician)|Samuel Levy]] had requested $2 million to replace the building's elevators, which were so unreliable that some employees used the emergency stairs instead of the elevators.<ref name="nyt-1931-02-27">{{Cite news |date=1931-02-27 |title=Municipal Building to Have New Lifts; Levy, Heeding Many Protests, Promises to Ask $2,000,000 for Modern System |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1931/02/27/archives/municipal-building-to-have-new-lifts-levy-heeding-many-protests.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> All of the elevators needed twice-daily inspections, and, since their manufacturer was no longer in business,<ref name="nyt19340106" /> the city had to make its own replacement parts for the elevators, which were described as "old and wheezy",<ref>{{Cite news|date=January 7, 1935|title=City's Elevators Nearing Their End; Replacement of Old, Wheezy Cars in Municipal Building to Begin in 60 Days.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1935/01/07/archives/citys-elevators-nearing-their-end-replacement-of-old-wheezy-cars-in.html|access-date=May 17, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and acting like "[[Coney Island]] roller coasters".<ref name=":4">{{Cite news|date=April 21, 1936|title=Municipal Building Gets New Elevators; 7 Automatic Machines Replace Old Ones That Acted Like Coney Roller Coasters.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1936/04/21/archives/municipal-building-gets-new-elevators-7-automatic-machines-replace.html|access-date=May 18, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> After fourteen of the elevators were taken out of service in late 1934,<ref>{{Cite news|date=November 6, 1934|title=14 City Elevators Barred From Use; Six Municipal Building Lifts Are Found Unfit and Eight Others Will Be Tested|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1934/11/06/archives/14-city-elevators-barred-from-use-six-municipal-building-lifts-are.html|access-date=May 18, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p1221460627">{{cite news |date=6 Nov 1934 |title=14 Elevators In Municipal Building Halted: 6 Cars Are Discarded as Unfit. 8 Others Shut Down Temporarily Pending Test 52,000 Inconvenienced Fassler Says Lifts Have Been Dropping Every Day |page=7 |work=New York Herald Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1221460627}}}}</ref> architect Mitchell Bernstein filed plans in January 1935 for a $160,000 renovation of the building's elevators and offices.<ref name="nyt19350116" /> Work began that June<ref>{{Cite news|date=June 18, 1935|title=Elevator Work Begins; Municipal Building Installation Forces Traffic 'Stagger' Plan.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1935/06/18/archives/elevator-work-begins-municipal-building-installation-forces-traffic.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and was funded partially with a $1.8&nbsp;million grant from the [[Works Progress Administration]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=November 10, 1934|title=Loan for Elevators is Obtained by City; $1,772,300 of PWA Funds Will Be Used to Replace Those in Municipal Building.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1934/11/10/archives/loan-for-elevators-is-obtained-by-city-1772300-of-pwa-funds-will-be.html|access-date=May 17, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> While the elevators were being replaced, city employees worked in three staggered shifts.<ref>{{Cite news|date=December 1, 1936|title=3 Shifts for City Aides; Workers in Municipal Building Put on 'Staggered' Time.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1936/12/01/archives/3-shifts-for-city-aides-workers-in-municipal-building-put-on.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Some of the shafts above the 14th floor were removed to make way for office space.<ref name="nyt19350116">{{Cite news|date=January 16, 1935|title=New Offices in Lift Plan; Structural Changes for Municipal Building to Cost $160,000.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1935/01/16/archives/new-offices-in-lift-plan-structural-changes-for-municipal-building.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The first group of seven new elevators was installed in April 1936,<ref name=":4" /><ref name="p1237384626">{{cite news |date=21 Apr 1936 |title=New Lifts Start Service In Municipal Building: Officials Mark Partial Completion of $1,342,000 P. W.A. Job |page=21 |work=New York Herald Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1237384626}}}}</ref> and the elevator-replacement project was completed at the end of 1937.<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 23, 1937 |title=Levy Opens Elevators; Last Four New Cars Installed in Municipal Building |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1937/12/23/archives/levy-opens-elevators-last-four-new-cars-installed-in-municipal.html |access-date=May 16, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="p1223336808">{{cite news |date=23 Dec 1937 |title=New Elevators Dedicated At Municipal Building: Opening of Last 4 Completes System of 32 Cars |page=11 |work=New York Herald Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1223336808}}}}</ref>

The city government conducted other renovations during the 1930s, cleaning the facade for the first time in 1936.<ref name="p1222073046">{{cite news |date=23 Jul 1936 |title=Municipal Building Getting Its First Bath |page=6 |work=New York Herald Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1222073046}}}}</ref><ref name="nyt-1936-07-23">{{Cite news |date=1936-07-23 |title=Bath for City Buildings; Workmen Start Cleaning Outside of Municipal Structure. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1936/07/23/archives/bath-for-city-buildings-workmen-start-cleaning-outside-of-municipal.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> ''Civic Fame'' at the top of the Municipal Building was refurbished during the 1930s,<ref name="Civic Fame" /> and green [[mercury vapor bulb]]s were installed in the north lobby.<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 9, 1934 |title=City Tries Green Lights.; New Bulbs Bring Comment in Lobby of Municipal Building. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1934/03/09/archives/city-tries-green-lights-new-bulbs-bring-comment-in-lobby-of.html |access-date=May 17, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Several [[Civil Works Administration]] artists also created paintings for some of the offices.<ref name="p1221985172">{{cite news |date=14 May 1935 |title=Officials Who Had Their Pick Don't Mind C. W. A. Art at All: Some in Municipal Building Had to Take What Was Left So Paintings Leave Them Cool Hanging, in Progress a Year, Nearly Done Work by C. W. A. Artists Finds Haven in Municipal Building |page=19 |work=New York Herald Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1221985172}}}}</ref> A bronze plaque, memorializing 316 firefighters who [[Line of duty death|died on duty]], was dedicated at the building in 1937.<ref name="nyt-1937-10-09">{{Cite news |date=1937-10-09 |title=Plaque Unveiled for Dead Firemen; Bronze Memorial in Municipal Building Lists 316 Who Lost Lives in Line of Duty |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1937/10/09/archives/plaque-unveiled-for-dead-firemen-bronze-memorial-in-municipal.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The city also planned to add three stories atop the building for $2.037 million; to fund this project, it received a $916,650 grant from the [[Public Works Administration]] in 1938.<ref name="p1251435121">{{cite news |date=25 Jun 1938 |title=$14,147,725 P.W.A. Funds Awarded City: New York Gets Its First Taste of Pump Priming for an Immediate Start on 28 New Projects $2,500,000 Granted Brooklyn Library Hospitals, Health Centers and Schools on List; Addition Is Provided for Municipal Building |page=1 |work=New York Herald Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1251435121}}}}</ref><ref name="nyt-1938-06-25">{{Cite news |date=1938-06-25 |title=$31,328,500 Works Approved for City; PWA Authorizes 28 Schools, Hospitals, Bridges' and Other Enterprises |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1938/06/25/archives/31328500-works-approved-for-cityy-pwa-authorizes-28-schools.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> By the next year, the building could no longer accommodate all of the city government's agencies, several of which were located in alternate quarters surrounding [[Foley Square]] to the north. The offices in the Municipal Building included radio station WNYC on the 25th floor, the Municipal Reference Library on the 22nd floor, and the Marriage Chapel on the 2nd floor.<ref name="fednyc"/>

In 1949, the city's commissioner of public works announced that four floors would be renovated and modernized in the first phase of a planned multi-stage overhaul.<ref>{{Cite news|date=June 24, 1949|title=City to Modernize Office Structure; 4 Floors of Municipal Building to Be Redesigned as First Step in General Overhaul|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1949/06/24/archives/city-to-modernize-office-structure-4-floors-of-municipal-building.html|access-date=May 17, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The next year, the city began installing a dial-telephone system at the Municipal Building, replacing the fourteen old telephone switchboards. At the time, the 20 city agencies in the building had a collective 1,264 telephones.<ref>{{Cite news|date=April 27, 1950|title=City Building Due to Get Dial Phones; to Install New Telephone System in Municipal Building|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1950/04/27/archives/city-building-due-to-get-dial-phones-to-install-new-telephone.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The new switchboards were activated in 1951, and every line in the Municipal Building was given the same 10-digit phone number with 1,426 four-digit [[Extension (telephone)|extensions]];<ref>{{Cite news|date=October 27, 1951|title=City Building Gets New Phone System; Calls to Whitehall 3-3600 Will Now Reach All Bureaus in Municipal Structure|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1951/10/27/archives/city-building-gets-new-phone-system-calls-to-whitehall-33600-will.html|access-date=May 17, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=October 27, 1951 |title=All in Municipal Building Get Same Phone Number |page=9 |work=New York Herald Tribune |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1322438416}}}}</ref> the number was changed in 1963 when the city government consolidated about 7,000 phone extensions in Lower Manhattan.<ref name="nyt-1963-06-07">{{Cite news |date=1963-06-07 |title=New Phone System Takes Calls Direct To City's Agencies |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1963/06/07/archives/new-phone-system-takes-calls-direct-to-citys-agencies.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The [[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]] designated the building as an official city landmark in 1966,<ref name="nyt-1966-02-08">{{Cite news |date=1966-02-08 |title=City Hall Is Named Official Landmark And a Top Beauty |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1966/02/08/archives/city-hall-is-named-official-landmark-and-a-top-beauty.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and the facade was again cleaned the next year for $400,000.<ref name="nyt-1967-04-27">{{Cite news |date=1967-04-27 |title=Municipal Tower Will Be Cleaned; First Scrubbing Since 1906 to Cost City $400,000 |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/04/27/archives/municipal-tower-will-be-cleaned-first-scrubbing-since-1906-to-cost.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

==== 1970s to present ====
The Municipal Building was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1972.<ref name="nris">{{cite web|title=Federal Register: 44 Fed. Reg. 7107 (Feb. 6, 1979)|url=http://cdn.loc.gov/service/ll/fedreg/fr044/fr044026/fr044026.pdf|date=February 6, 1979|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|page=7539<!--(PDF p. 339)-->|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161230122005/http://cdn.loc.gov/service/ll/fedreg/fr044/fr044026/fr044026.pdf|archive-date=December 30, 2016|access-date=March 8, 2020}}</ref> The section of Chambers Street under the building was closed to vehicular traffic around the same time, with the construction of [[1 Police Plaza|One Police Plaza]].<ref name="p278145943" /> In 1974, [[Wank Adams Slavin]] was hired to undertake a $24&nbsp;million renovation of the building's interior. As part of the renovation, corridors were to be narrowed, and partitions between offices would be removed, to create more office space; vinyl floor tiles and recessed lighting were to be installed; and the outdated plumbing system was to be replaced. The project was to increase the building's capacity to 6,500 employees.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Fowler|first=Glenn|date=May 9, 1974|title=Interior of Municipal Building To Get $24-Million Renovation|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/05/09/archives/interior-of-municipal-building-to-get-24million-renovation.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Toscano|first=John|date=March 24, 1974|title=Municipal Building to Get Facelift|page=20|work=New York Daily News|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51598570/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> During this time, ''Civic Fame'' was also renovated.<ref name="nydn19740704">{{cite news|date=July 4, 1974|title=Facelifting to Cost $294,500|page=20|work=New York Daily News|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51476543/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="nyt19741225" /> The building had been cleaned by 1975 at a cost of $300,000; although the interior had not been renovated yet, more funds for the project had also been appropriated.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Goldberger|first=Paul|date=April 22, 1975|title=Plans Rethought for Old Buildings of Distinction|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/04/22/archives/plans-rethought-for-old-buildings-of-distinction.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The building still had 5,000 employees by the late 1970s, but ''[[Newsday]]'' wrote that the building had "peeling walls, musty windows and old filing cabinets".<ref name="p965918696">{{cite news |last=Duggan |first=Dennis |date=29 Oct 1978 |title=A Tale of Two Cities A Stone's Throw Apart |page=4Q |work=Newsday |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|965918696}}}}</ref> Because the air conditioning rarely worked, many employees typically left the building an hour early during the summer.<ref name="nyt-1981-08-22">{{Cite news |last=Haberman |first=Clyde |date=1981-08-22 |title=City Hall Trudges to a Tattoo of Summer |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/08/22/nyregion/city-hall-trudges-to-a-tattoo-of-summer.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

A piece of granite fell from the Municipal Building in 1987, landing on a ramp on the Brooklyn Bridge, although no one was injured. A subsequent investigation found other loose rocks on the facade, and netting was placed on the facade as a result.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Seaton|first1=Charles|last2=Marques|first2=Stuart|date=April 9, 1987|title=Gotta have rox in the head|page=5|work=New York Daily News|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51598263/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Fowler|first=Glenn|date=April 8, 1987|title=Falling Debris Shuts Brooklyn Bridge Approaches|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/04/08/nyregion/falling-debris-shuts-brooklyn-bridge-approaches.html|access-date=May 18, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=November 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171105145107/http://www.nytimes.com/1987/04/08/nyregion/falling-debris-shuts-brooklyn-bridge-approaches.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1988, workers surrounded the building with scaffolding in preparation for the first large-scale restoration of the facade, which was to begin the next year. The renovation was expected to cost $58&nbsp;million and required {{Convert|39|mi||abbr=}} of steel tubes to support the massive scaffolds.<ref name="nyt19881204" /> By then, the building housed 6,000 employees and contained 11&nbsp;percent of all the office space owned by the city government. The Municipal Building had become so overcrowded that several agencies, like the [[New York City Department of Buildings|Department of Buildings]], had been forced to relocate.<ref name="p278145943">{{cite news |last=Mandell |first=Jonathan |date=15 May 1989 |title=The Building of New York 6,000 people work there. Each day 80 couples get married there. And it has some of the most remarkable restrooms in the city |page=8 |work=Newsday |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278145943}}}}</ref> The facade restoration was undertaken by the architects Wank Adams Slavin.<ref name="aia4" /> Another restoration of ''Civic Fame'' took place during this time,<ref name="Roberts" /><ref name="nydn19911012">{{cite news|last=Tumposky|first=Ellen|date=October 12, 1991|title=Face-lift costs 900G|page=2|work=New York Daily News|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/51477747/|access-date=May 15, 2020|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> for which Wank Adams Slavin received a preservation award from the city government.<ref name="nyt-1992-10-29">{{Cite news |date=1992-10-29 |title=New York City to Give 9 Awards for Design |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/29/garden/new-york-city-to-give-9-awards-for-design.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

The 23rd and 24th stories were renovated in the early 1990s.<ref name="p219119967">{{cite magazine |last=Feiden |first=Douglas |date=16 Mar 1992 |title=Dinkins Rushes Capital Funds to Create Jobs |magazine=Crain's New York Business |volume=8 |issue=11 |page=1 |id={{ProQuest|219119967}}}}</ref> The building was renamed after [[David N. Dinkins]], New York City's first African-American mayor, upon his 88th birthday in October 2015.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Ngo|first=Emily|url=http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/nyc-municipal-building-renamed-for-former-mayor-david-n-dinkins-1.10967492|title=NYC Municipal Building renamed for former Mayor Dinkins|work=[[Newsday]]|date=October 15, 2015|access-date=May 18, 2020|archive-date=March 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170318172610/http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/nyc-municipal-building-renamed-for-former-mayor-david-n-dinkins-1.10967492|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Grynbaum|first=Michael M.|date=October 15, 2015|title=After Honor, David Dinkins Joins Select Group of Ex-New York City Mayors|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/16/nyregion/dinkins-joins-select-group-of-ex-new-york-city-mayors-after-honor.html|access-date=May 13, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=December 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191220134414/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/16/nyregion/dinkins-joins-select-group-of-ex-new-york-city-mayors-after-honor.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

{{clear left}}

==Agencies==
[[File:Manhattan Municipal Building by David Shankbone edited-1 crop.jpg|thumb|A view of the building from above with [[Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse]] in the background]]

The following New York City public offices are located in the Manhattan Municipal Building:<ref name="NYDCAS" />
* [[New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services]]
* [[New York City Department of Finance]]
* [[New York Public Service Commission]]
* [[Manhattan Borough President]]
* [[New York City Public Advocate]]
* [[New York City Comptroller]]
* [[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]]
* New York City Office of Payroll Administration
* New York City Tax Commission
* New York City Department of Veterans' Services
* Field offices of the Office of the Mayor, [[New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications]] (DoITT), [[New York City Department of Buildings]], New York State Office of the Inspector General, and [[New York City Department of Environmental Protection]].

The Office of the City Clerk was formerly housed in the Municipal Building; about 16,000 weddings were performed annually at the former Manhattan Marriage Bureau in the Municipal Building,<ref>{{cite news |title=Manhattan Marriage Bureau Gets Makeover |first=John |last=Del Signore |url=http://gothamist.com/2009/01/08/manhattan_marriage_bureau_gets_make.php |work=[[Gothamist]] |date=January 8, 2009 |access-date=June 9, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090409064432/http://gothamist.com/2009/01/08/manhattan_marriage_bureau_gets_make.php |archive-date=April 9, 2009}}</ref> in civil ceremonies lasting about four minutes. The City Clerk's Office relocated to nearby 141 Worth Street in 2009.<ref name="NYDCAS" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=New City Clerk's Office and Marriage Bureau Opens for Business on January 12|url=https://www.cityclerk.nyc.gov/content/marriage-bureau-announcements/new-city-clerks-office-opens-for-business-on-january-12|date=January 7, 2009|publisher=City Clerk – NYC Marriage Bureau|access-date=May 18, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Manhattan Marriage Bureau Gets Ready to Move |first=Jen |last=Chung |url=http://gothamist.com/2008/10/05/manhattan_marriage_bureau_gets_read.php |work=[[Gothamist]] |date=October 5, 2008 |access-date=August 7, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090409064422/http://gothamist.com/2008/10/05/manhattan_marriage_bureau_gets_read.php |archive-date=April 9, 2009}}</ref>

== Incidents ==
Numerous accidents have occurred at the Municipal Building. In 1921, an elevator overturned, killing its two occupants.<ref>{{Cite news|date=August 6, 1921|title=Two Fatally Injured in Municipal Building; Elevator Overturns, Hurling Them Into Cellar|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1921/08/06/archives/two-fatally-injured-in-municipal-building-elevator-overturns.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> A pile of coal stored in bunkers underneath the building caught fire in 1942,<ref>{{Cite news|date=July 11, 1942|title=Fire in City's Winter Coal Attracts Buffs, Except the Mayor, to Municipal Building|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1942/07/11/archives/fire-in-citys-winter-coal-attracts-buffs-except-the-mayor-to.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and a 2005 fire slightly injured six firefighters.<ref>{{Cite news|date=November 27, 2005|title=Fire at Municipal Building|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/27/nyregion/fire-at-municipal-building.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=May 29, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150529193913/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/27/nyregion/fire-at-municipal-building.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, a flood on the fourth floor in 1959 destroyed brand-new machinery that processed the pay checks for the building's workers.<ref>{{Cite news|date=February 12, 1959|title=Fire, Flood Visit 2 City Buildings; Blaze in City Hall Minor -Municipal Building Deluge Damages Check Machine|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1959/02/12/archives/fire-flood-visit-2-city-buildings-blaze-in-city-hall-minor.html|access-date=May 16, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

== Impact ==

=== Critical reception and influence ===
Lionel Moses, appraising McKim, Mead & White's work in 1922, said that "we have a building of 580 feet to the top of the figure, of superbly monumental character and classic beauty, every part of which attests the architectural knowledge of its designers".<ref name="p124696411">{{Cite magazine |last=Moses |first=Lionel |date=May 24, 1922 |title=McKim, Mead & White--a History: Municipal Building U. S. Post Office Building Pennsylvania Hotel McKinley Memorial McKim, Mead & White Tennessee Memorial |magazine=The American Architect and the Architectural Review |volume=121 |issue=2394 |page=418 |id={{proQuest|124696411}}}}</ref> In particular, Moses praised the fact that the firm could create a large office building on "a comparatively small plot of irregular shape", which could still accommodate a subway station, a public street, and mechanical equipment.<ref name="p124696411" /> The 1939 ''[[WPA Guides|WPA Guide]] to New York City'' stated that the facade "gains dignity through the bold treatment of the intermediate stories, despite the poorly related tower and the disturbing character of the Corinthian colonnade at the base".<ref name="fednyc" /> In their 2004 book ''New York Artwalks'', Marina Harrison and Lucy D. Rosenfeld described the ''Civic Fame'' statue as "a graceful and unusually charming sculpture in the allegorical style of municipal-building decorations".<ref name="Artwalks" />

The building was also noted for its symbolism. A reporter for ''Newsday'' wrote in 1987: "It is the city not just as a metaphor—although it is certainly that, from Civic Fame (the name of the statue at the very top) right down to the stressful rumble underneath (six subway tracks where the basement would be). The Municipal Building is where the money is."<ref name="p278145943" />

The Municipal Building was the first of several ornately designed civic office buildings,<ref name="NPS p. 32"/> influencing other structures such as the [[Terminal Tower]] in [[Cleveland]], the [[Fisher Building]] in [[Detroit]], the [[Wrigley Building]] in [[Chicago]],<ref name="Emporis2"/> and the [[Helmsley Building|New York Central Building]] in [[Midtown Manhattan]].<ref>{{cite web |date=March 31, 1987 |title=Helmsley Building |url=http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/1297.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003115031/http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/1297.pdf |archive-date=October 3, 2021 |access-date=June 15, 2020 |publisher=[[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]] |page=7}}</ref> In particular, the base of the Municipal Building above Chambers Street was likened to the base of the New York Central Building, which spanned [[Park Avenue]].<ref name="nyt-1922-10-11">{{Cite news |date=1922-10-11 |title=Plan Big Building to Span Park Avenue; New York Central's Offer to City Provides for Sixteen Story Office Structure. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1922/10/11/archives/plan-big-building-to-span-park-avenue-new-york-centrals-offer-to.html |access-date=2023-04-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The base also inspired the [[General Motors Building]] in Detroit, while the tower stories influenced the "Tower of Jewels", designed by [[Carrère and Hastings]] for the [[Panama–Pacific International Exposition]].<ref name="Roth p. 3392">{{harvnb|Roth|1983|ps=.|p=339}}</ref> The arches of the [[Moscow State University]]'s main building and of [[550 Madison Avenue]] in Midtown Manhattan were also inspired by that of the Municipal Building.<ref name="p278145943" />

=== In popular culture ===
The Manhattan Municipal Building appears in several films, such as a key scene of the 1996 film ''[[One Fine Day (1996 film)|One Fine Day]]'', in which Jack Taylor ([[George Clooney]]) spots Manny Feldstein ([[Joe Grifasi]]) and chases him to the roof.<ref name="Katz p. 300"/> In ''[["Crocodile" Dundee]]'' (1986), muggers inside the Municipal Building entrance to the subway station pull a knife on the title character ([[Paul Hogan]]) and his girlfriend Sue ([[Linda Kozlowski]]).<ref>{{harvnb|ps=.|Katz|1995|pp=298–299}}</ref> In ''[[Ghostbusters]]'' (1984), the team leaves to confront Gozer from the building.<ref name="Katz p. 300">{{harvnb|ps=.|Katz|1995|p=300}}</ref> In ''[[Léon: The Professional|The Professional]]'' (1994), antagonist Stansfield, played by the actor [[Gary Oldman]], works for the [[Drug Enforcement Administration]] at the building, in office 4602.<ref>{{cite web| title=Léon, The Professional (1994)| website=On the Set of New York| url=http://www.onthesetofnewyork.com/leon.html| access-date=May 16, 2020| archive-date=April 29, 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200429145204/http://onthesetofnewyork.com/leon.html| url-status=live}}</ref> ''Newsday'' wrote in 1987 that the structure was often used for film shoots where characters jumped off the building's roof.<ref name="p278145943" /> Additionally, in the music video for the song ''[[Not Afraid]]'', the rapper [[Eminem]] is depicted standing on the edge of the building's roof in multiple shots.<ref name="making1">{{cite video|url=http://music.aol.ca/video/eminem-not-afraid-behind-the-scenes-day-1/eminem/adam:7095986|people=[[Eminem]], [[Rich Lee]], Justin Diener|title=Not Afraid (Behind The Scenes, Day 1) Video by Eminem|publisher=[[AOL Music]]|access-date=September 1, 2011|archive-date=August 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805031732/http://music.aol.ca/video/eminem-not-afraid-behind-the-scenes-day-1/eminem/adam:7095986|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Architecture|New York City|}}
* [[Early skyscrapers]]
* [[List of New York City borough halls and municipal buildings]]
* [[List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan below 14th Street]]
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Manhattan below 14th Street]]

==References==
===Notes===
{{Notelist}}

===Citations===
{{reflist}}

===Sources===
* {{cite report|title=Historic Structures Report: Municipal Building|url=https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/72000879.pdf|date=October 18, 1972|publisher=[[National Register of Historic Places]], [[National Park Service]]|ref={{harvid|National Park Service|1972}}}}
* {{cite book | last=Katz | first=Chuck | title=Manhattan on Film: Walking Tours of Hollywood's Fabled Front Lot | publisher=Limelight Editions | series=Limelight Series | year=1995 | isbn=978-0-87910-319-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7XA0igasljEC }}
* {{cite nysky}}
* {{cite book | last=Roth | first=Leland | title=McKim, Mead & White, Architects | publisher=Harper & Row | year=1983 | isbn=978-0-06-430136-7 | oclc=9325269}}
* {{cite New York 1900}}
* {{Sfn whitelist|CITEREFTauranac1985}}{{Cite Elegant New York}}
* {{cite magazine |last=Walton |first=William |date=Mar 20, 1912 |title=The New Municipal Building, New York and Its Sculpture: the New Municipal Building and Its Sculpture |magazine=The American Architect |volume=101 |issue=1891 |id={{ProQuest|124667672}}}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Manhattan Municipal Building}}

{{s-start}}
{{succession box | title=[[List of largest buildings in the world|Largest office building in the world]]<br />by floor area<br />1913–1915 | before=[[Hudson Terminal]]  | after=[[Equitable Building (Manhattan)|Equitable Building]] | years=}}
{{s-end}}
{{Civic Center, Manhattan}}
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York|state=collapsed}}

[[Category:1914 establishments in New York City]]
[[Category:City and town halls on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Civic Center, Manhattan]]
[[Category:Government buildings completed in 1914]]
[[Category:Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Government of New York City]]
[[Category:McKim, Mead & White buildings]]
[[Category:New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Skyscraper office buildings in Manhattan]]
[[Category:1910s architecture in the United States]]