The 40-story Bryan Tower in Dallas is under consideration as a potential home for a new City Hall, as local officials evaluate options for relocating core municipal functions. According to reporting referenced from the Dallas Business Journal, the building’s ownership group, Pacific Elm, has held discussions with the city about the possibility of the municipality taking over the entire tower.
Bryan Tower, located at 2001 Bryan St., was completed in 1973 and is currently fully unoccupied. The building’s empty status positions it as a candidate for large-scale single-tenant use, with the city exploring whether the tower could accommodate the range of departments and services required for a consolidated civic hub.
The potential relocation is being weighed against the cost of reinvesting in the existing City Hall. A report prepared by the Dallas Economic Development Corp. estimated that renovating the current facility would cost nearly $1 billion, noting that many of the building’s systems are now beyond their usable life. That estimate is shaping the city’s analysis of whether to modernize in place or shift municipal operations into an alternative office property.
As part of that evaluation process, the city is seeking about 500,000 square feet of office space to house traditional city functions. This target footprint reflects the scale of government operations that would need to be accommodated and provides a benchmark for assessing candidate buildings, including Bryan Tower and other large office assets.
Another property mentioned as a possible City Hall location is Whitacre Tower, the former headquarters of AT&T Inc. The building has been floated as an alternative to Bryan Tower in the city’s search for a new civic address. Pacific Elm, which owns Bryan Tower, is also identified as a part owner of Whitacre Tower, linking the two candidate properties through a common ownership interest.
No decision has been announced on whether the city will proceed with a relocation, which building it might choose, or on what terms it might occupy the space. The analysis underway highlights both the significant capital required to extend the life of aging civic facilities and the role that vacant office towers can play as potential destinations for large public-sector users.
