A New City Hall for a New City

The Beverly Hills community voted in 1923 to become its own city—separate from Los Angeles—winning by the small victorious margin of 507 to 337.

In 1925 The Beverly Hills Citizen reported that "the first City Hall plan [was considered] in 1925, as Beverly Hills perpetuated the city's idea of independence from L.A. ...maintaining its own aims and purposes as a separate political entity."

In the spring of 1929, a City Council decision was made to locate Beverly Hills' government entities on 6.5 acres owned by the Pacific Electric Corporation. In response to a protester's inquiry as to why trees on the site had to be cut down during construction, The Citizen stated in 1929 that City Clerk B.J. Ferminger was sensitive to concerns about keeping the area green.

"Although it is like losing a perfectly good molar tooth, it is necessary" for building the City Hall complex, Ferminger said.

An Oct. 15, 1931 article in The Citizen reads that work on City Hall was delayed a month because of personnel troubles caused by the employment dislocations of the nation's failing economy during the Great Depression. As a policy decision, it was important to Beverly Hills leaders that as many unemployed residents as possible be hired to build the civic facility. 

In February 1932, the cornerstone for City Hall was laid. The local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution planted the new facility's first tree. In April 1932, The Citizen commemorated a City Proclamation that read: 

On this day, April 28, 1932, this souvenir issue of The Beverly Hills Citizen is dedicated to the first completed unit of the magnificent civic center project. ...Such an edifice, heart of America's most perfect residential city is pride-inspiring. ...Crowned with the approbation of those it serves, the new civic building will stand through the years, a monument to the sterling foresight, solid principles and pride of its citizens. 

When I worked for five years on city staff at City Hall, I regularly marveled at the beauty of my workplace. I suggest readers walk through the building's beautiful corridors to see for themselves.

Thank you for reading, Russ