The current Long Beach city hall is a fourteen story tower of rough concrete and steel, faced in Darth Vader-black glass overlooking a decrepit and frankly hideous civic center plaza. A marvel of 1970s design and engineering, its structural flaws threaten to topple it in event of a major earthquake. In my dream redesign of the whole kit and caboodle, I have envisioned a three tower replacement with an articulated travertine and glass base.
The city counsel will meet in a large glass atrium and natural light for all areas is an absolute necessity considering the constant California sun, helping to reduce energy needs. The main podium space is reserved for basic city services and the towers will help to consolidate various departments and allow for renting offices to outside companies.
- Building courtyard
The towers themselves are each 340 feet tall, with 22 floors on smaller plate sizes than the old tower. Each building facade is opaque glass with a similar, though not as pronounced appearance to the Arco towers near the World Trade Center.
Along with the total site revamp as in my previous posts https://thenuminouscosmos.com/2013/12/28/a-new-long-beach-civic-center/, this new city hall would allow the people of Long Beach to experience a more robust and engaging civic center more in keeping to modern sensibilities.
The Numinous Cosmos 