Minneapolis City Hall
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Minneapolis City Hall-Hennepin County Courthouse
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| Location | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
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| Coordinates | 44°58′38″N 93°15′55″W / 44.9773°N 93.2654°WCoordinates: 44°58′38″N 93°15′55″W / 44.9773°N 93.2654°W |
| Built | 1888–1909 |
| Built by | Charles F. Haglin and Charles Morse |
| Architect | Long and Kees |
| Architectural style | Richardsonian Romanesque |
| NRHP Reference # | 74001022 |
| Added to NRHP | December 4, 1974 |
Minneapolis City Hall and Hennepin County Courthouse (also known as the Municipal Building), designed by Long and Kees in 1888, is the main building used by the city government of Minneapolis, Minnesota as well as by Hennepin County, Minnesota. The structure has served as mainly local government offices since it was built, and today the building is 60 percent occupied by the city and 40 percent occupied by the County. The building is jointly owned by the city and county and managed by the Municipal Building Commission. The Commission consists of the chair of the County Board, the mayor of the City of Minneapolis, a member of the County Board and a member of the Minneapolis City Council. The County Board chair serves as the president of the Commission and the mayor serves as the vice president. The building bears a striking resemblance to the city hall buildings in Cincinnati and Toronto. The City Hall and Courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
The building replaced an earlier City Hall that existed from 1873 until 1912 near the old intersection between Hennepin Avenue and Nicollet Avenue. That structure eventually was razed to make way for Gateway Park, which continues to occupy part of the old City Hall site. The building also replaced an earlier courthouse and also the earlier Hennepin County Jail, which was located where U.S. Bank Stadium currently stands.
The building, located at 350 South Fifth Street, is an example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. The design is based upon Henry Hobson Richardson's Allegheny County Courthouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Washington School, the first schoolhouse in Minneapolis west of the Mississippi River, was demolished to make way for the new building. Groundbreaking took place in 1889, and the cornerstone was laid (a story off the ground) in 1891. Construction did not officially end until 1906, although the structural exterior was essentially complete by the end of 1895. The county began moving in to its side (4th Ave.) in November 1895, while the city (3rd Ave.) side was not occupied until December 1902. Cost was about $3,554,000, which works out to 28¢ per cubic foot ($10/m³).
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