Councilmember Philip Falcone speaks at Monday's City Hall 50th anniversary celebration, marking five decades since the building's dedication to the people of Riverside.
Riverside City Hall celebrated its 50th anniversary Monday morning with a ceremony that brought together the largest gathering of current and former local elected officials since the building's grand opening five decades ago.
The celebration took place exactly 50 years to the minute after the original dedication ceremony on Oct. 6, 1975, at 11:30 a.m. Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson welcomed attendees to mark the golden anniversary of the building "dedicated to the people of Riverside."
The anniversary celebration mirrored the 1975 dedication ceremony, including the Riverside Police Department honor guard and performances by La Sierra and North high school students.
Ward 1 Councilmember Philip Falcone, who spearheaded the 10-month planning effort, announced that the commemoration represents the beginning of a year focused on expanding access to local government. The city plans to offer 50 tours over the next 12 months, starting Friday with Fremont Elementary School.
Falcone said that changes now, noting students haven't toured City Hall or learned about local government there since 2019. "We are looking forward to partnering with the Mission Inn Foundation to reopen the doors of City Hall, to bring students into the building and see how they can change and make their city better through local government."
The ceremony also served as a somber reminder of the Oct. 6, 1998, shooting and hostage situation at City Hall, known as the "Miracle on Main Street." Several former council members and the mayor from that incident attended Monday's event.
"Their experience and resilience is an important reminder that political violence is never acceptable. And we need to remember that now more than ever," Lock Dawson said.
City Hall received local landmark designation in July from the Cultural Heritage Board and City Council, becoming city landmark number 152. The designation protects the building for future generations.
The building was designed by Herman Ruhnau and E. Kurt Steinmann of Ruhnau, Evans, Brown & Steinmann, Architects, combining new formalism—which blended classical elements like symmetry and columns with modern materials—and brutalism, characterized by exposed concrete and bold geometric forms. Both styles were popular for civic buildings in the 1960s and '70s. The firm, now Ruhnau Clarke Architects, is located directly next to City Hall.
Attendees browse copies of "City Hall 50: Building a City Beautiful" at the Riverside Historical Society table during Monday's ceremony. The book, researched and written by Councilmember Philip Falcone and Jennifer Mermilliod, chronicles the building's history with all proceeds benefiting the Historical Society.
Falcone's interest in the building's history led him to spend more than four years researching it, conducting dozens of interviews with current and former city leaders and collecting hundreds of photos. This research culminated in a book titled "City Hall 50: Building a City Beautiful," published by the Riverside Historical Society with all proceeds supporting the organization.
"Preserving this building and telling the story was never just about the brick and mortar of the building. It was more about how do we capture the importance of the work that occurs here," Falcone said. "This place matters and what happens here matters."
The ceremony included numerous dignitaries. Former mayors Rusty Bailey and Ron Loveridge attended, along with 19 former council members.
The mayor referenced the 1975 dedication address by then-U.S. Senator John Tunney, who spoke about government buildings like City Hall being "temples to democracy."
"What was said about City Hall in 1975 rings true again today. This City Hall was and still is a symbol of local democracy where all Riversiders are welcome. This is our local version of the People's House," Lock Dawson said.
The celebration featured new additions to the City Hall complex, including a towering Raincross sculpture by metal artist Rico Alderette, installed last week behind the building.
Historical banners displaying images from the building's past line the street, including a photo of former Councilmember Ernest Pintor unveiling the original plaque on Oct. 5, 1975. Pintor attended Monday's ceremony, creating what Falcone called "a full circle moment."
Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson and councilmembers (from left) Chuck Conder, Steve Hemenway, Jim Perry, Philip Falcone, Steven Robillard, Sean Mill and Clarissa Cervantes unveil City Hall's landmark plaque.
The ceremony concluded with the unveiling of the landmark plaque at City Hall's main entrance, followed by a group photograph of all current and former elected officials on the building's front steps.
The largest gathering of current and former mayors and councilmembers in Riverside's history will take place today at the City Hall 50 Anniversary Celebration.
