Oakland City Hall
OAKLAND CITY HALL
Begun in 1911 and completed in 1914, this is Oakland’s fifth City Hall. Its construc-
tion was funded with a $1.15 million bond issue passed in 1909. The Beaux Arts
design was by the New York firm of Palmer and Hornbostel, winners of a national design
competition for a building that would reflect Oakland’s arrival as a major metropolis.
For many years the tallest building in Oakland, it was reputedly the first city hall in the
United States to combine the ceremonial aspects of government with the modern
high-rise office tower. Its three-tiered design earned it the nickname of
"Mayor Mott’s wedding cake." The ten-story office tower and a 91-foot ornamented clock tower and
cupola rise above a three-story base with the council chambers,
hearing rooms, and mayor’s offices.
The building is of steel frame construction clad in white
California granite. Glazed terra cotta ornament represents the
state’s agricultural abundance: grapes, olives, figs, and wheat.
Structurally damaged in the 1989 earthquake, City Hall was
completely renovated and retrofitted with an innovative base
isolation system, with assistance from the Federal Emergency
Management Agency. It was rededicated by Mayor Elihu Harris
on September 15, 1995.
City Hall was designated an Oakland City Landmark in 1979
and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.