City of Southside Place, Texas
The new City Hall for a Houston suburb is designed as a community gateway. It sits across from a two-story retail building and elementary school that date back to the 1930s. The 14,700 SF program includes offices for the City Manager and staff; a Council Chamber, which also serves as the Municipal Court; the Police Department, including 911 emergency operations, dispatching, booking and holding cells; and the Fire Department with a garage for two pumper trucks. The facades relate to the scale of the nearby painted brick buildings and are enriched with patterned brick and cast stone detailed to enhance the rhythm of the large-scale windows. The cast stone base and frieze above the level one windows expand to a two-story scale at the entry.