Edinburg City Hall recognized in architecture book ‘City by Design'

It took a while before the large dirt mound outside the Edinburg City Hall materialized into something else.

The city had already taken a bold step by choosing to close a portion of McIntyre Street, a major thoroughfare that connects the Hidalgo County courthouse to the University of Texas-Pan American, when it planned its new city hall, said Jamie Crawley, who managed the city hall project for TAG International.

But even in the city hall’s final stages of construction, some still wondered what they planned to do with the large, open area to one side.

“Once the plaza came into focus, everyone kind of got it,” Crawley said.

"It makes the city hall a place as opposed to just a building.”

The Edinburg City Hall was one of three sites in Hidalgo County selected for inclusion in City by Design: Texas, a coffee table book that showcases compelling architecture in the state and describes the influences that went into the work.

Doctors Hospital at Renaissance and the McAllen Art Village were also included in the book, which was published in June.

The plaza is envisioned as the central point of a pedestrian corridor stretching from the university to the courthouse, a goal of Mayor Richard Garcia, who wants the city hall to become a focal point of a downtown revitalization.

Architecture should enhance what the surrounding community offers, said Laura Warren, who converted a city block full of dilapidated and abandoned structures when she designed the McAllen Art Village.

Warren, president of the Warren Group Architects, which also was the architect on Doctors Hospital at Renaissance, said a key to design is functionality, from those who enjoy the arts on a leisurely stroll through the art village to the patients who are admitted into a hospital.

Warren said the inclusion of Hidalgo County sites in the well-known City By Design series shows the area’s architecture is being noticed.

“We are a thriving, fast-growing community,” Warren said. “A lot of people are turning around and paying attention.”

Jared Janes covers Hidalgo County government, Edinburg and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4424.