DALLAS — Attorneys for the Save Dallas City Hall Coalition sued the City of Dallas and key city officials in Dallas County district court, alleging that the city failed to follow laws requiring the maintenance and preservation of City Hall.
The coalition asks the court to require city officials to follow historic-preservation procedures, investigate alleged deterioration and make necessary repairs. The lawsuit does not seek monetary damages.
The lawsuit followed the expiration of a 60-day notice the coalition sent May 12 under Proposition S, a Dallas City Charter provision approved by voters in 2024 that allows residents to sue the city to enforce city or state laws after giving 60 days’ notice.
The coalition alleges the city failed to preserve and repair City Hall, improperly maintained city property and violated fiduciary duties.
The coalition separately asked Dallas’ Historic Preservation Officer Marcus Watson on July 22 to open a demolition-by-neglect investigation. The request, according to the lawsuit, required officials to inspect City Hall, meet with representatives, discuss financing for repairs and prepare a report for the Landmark Commission.
Watson acknowledged the request Aug. 5 and referred it to the City Attorney’s Office, according to the lawsuit. The coalition said it had not received notice that officials had scheduled or completed the required meeting, inspection, financing discussion or report when it filed the lawsuit.
Coalition President Bruce Richardson accused the city of failing to maintain the building and said officials had not used available funding for repairs.
“The City expects private citizens to maintain their properties, but refuses to take responsibility for maintaining our historic City Hall and Plaza,” Richardson said.
The lawsuit cites alleged water intrusion, cracking and concrete deterioration, electrical problems and a nonfunctioning generator as evidence of neglect under Dallas’ historic-preservation ordinance.
The coalition also alleges that the city identified about $22.6 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding capacity for City Hall generator, electrical and major maintenance projects but later transferred or reallocated some of the money while repairs remained incomplete. The lawsuit said the exact amount of funding still available remains unclear.
The coalition also alleges that the city has not completed the historic-landmark designation process more than 17 months after the Dallas Landmark Commission voted to initiate it.
According to the lawsuit, the city’s Historic Preservation Officer has not completed a required historical significance report, which could allow the two-year predesignation moratorium to expire March 3, 2027.
The lawsuit also connects the preservation dispute to discussions about the future of City Hall and a possible new Dallas Mavericks arena. The petition says the city hired a consultant in 2025 to study potential arena sites and that the Mavericks later identified the City Hall property and the former Valley View Mall site as potential locations.
The coalition is asking the court to order city officials to repair City Hall, prevent further deterioration and carry out required historic-preservation and demolition-by-neglect procedures.
It also asks the court to extend the City’s predesignation moratorium by the amount of time the coalition alleges officials delayed required action.