page_title: Halifax City Hall
section_title: 1996 to present
hierarchical_section_title: Halifax City Hall / History / 1996 to present
caption_attribution_description: English: Detail of renovations of Halifax City Hall stonework and exterior envelope upgrade, Halifax NS, 2013
context_page_description: Halifax City Hall is the home of municipal government in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Designed by architect Edward Elliot and constructed for the City of Halifax between 1887 and 1890, it is one of the oldest and largest public buildings in Nova Scotia. The property was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1997.
  Halifax City Hall was opened to Council and the public in 1890 replacing offices in the old court house on the Halifax waterfront. City Hall was chosen to become the seat of the newly created Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996 and is now home to Halifax Regional Council as well as various municipal offices.
context_section_description: City Hall was chosen to become the seat of the newly created Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996 and became home to Halifax Regional Council as well as various municipal offices. During the late 1990s, Halifax Regional Council attempted to have the building renamed from Halifax City Hall to Halifax Regional Hall, to reflect the fact that Nova Scotia no longer has any "cities". This proposal was promptly rejected after a public outcry among heritage advocates.
  In 2011 a major multi-year restoration of the building began. The original cornerstone of the building and several other stone facade features were painstakingly restored, while up to 80% of the exterior stone was replaced with new sandstone. The roof was replaced, heating and cooling systems upgraded and the 110-year-old elevator shaft decommissioned and replaced with a new, full size elevator. Interior upgrades were undertaken to bring the public and office spaces up to modern standards while respecting and maintaining character defining heritage elements.
caption: Close up of stonework restoration, January 2013
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