City prepares to move to new City Hall; still looking for proposals for the current downtown building

The City of Madison will be moving to its new City Hall building next month. Located at 503 S Highland Avenue, the new state-of-the-art facility is set to open its doors to the public on Wednesday, December 11. The new facility, designed to improve service accessibility, efficiency, and accommodate future growth, will serve as a central hub for city operations.

City Hall will continue to operate from its current location on Center Street through Friday, December 6. To facilitate the move, City Hall offices will be closed to the public on Monday, December 9, and Tuesday, December 10. Residents and visitors are encouraged to plan any necessary visits or transactions accordingly to avoid disruption.

An open house and ribbon-cutting ceremony are being planned to celebrate the new facility. Due to the busy holiday season, the celebration is tentatively scheduled for January of 2025, giving residents and staff a chance to tour the new facility, meet city leaders, and learn more about the enhancements.

At Monday’s City Commission meeting, City Administrator Jameson Berreth said the  contractor is working through the remaining punch list items, and staff will start training on the new systems of the building soon. 

As for the current City Hall, Madison is inviting qualified developers, designers, or contractors to submit proposals for the redevelopment of its historic City Hall and Police Station. The project aims to restore or repurpose the existing building into a commercial or mixed-use facility that benefits the community, and enhances the downtown district. The City encourages proposals that preserve the historical significance of the building while delivering a vision for the future of downtown Madison. So far no submissions have been received, but City Administrator Jameson Berreth said he has received some questions from interested developers.  

The site covers approximately 6,800 sq. ft. of Central Business District zoned property. is not on the National Register of Historic Places and therefore not subject to the local review process. It is “NR eligible” which potentially would allow the property to be added to the registry. 

Commissioners removed any deadline to accept proposals for the building, so that they can be submitted on a rolling basis.