The Beverly Hills City Hall has gracefully presided over the city's civic life since 1932. Architect Willliam Gage created the Spanish Renaissance building in typical government style of that era. The low classical base, which symbolizes government, is dominated by an eight-story tower, which represents commerce. But the beauty of the building, with its tiled dome and gilded cupola, soon transcended the typical government building and has become a beloved local landmark.

After 50 years of service, City Hall showed signs of age. The building did not meet new safety and earthquake codes and was too small to serve the city's growing population. A renovation project began in 1982 that increased office space from 49,000 to 67,000 square feet and brought the building up to code.

Throughout the project, the rich architectural details were carefully maintained. Inside, the terrazzo floors, marble walls and intricate ceilings were cleaned and restored. Outdoors, grime was meticulously removed from the blue, green and gold tile on the dome and gilded cupola. At the same time that the City Hall was under renovation, the architecture was used as the inspiration for rebuilding the new Civic Center, which was completed in 1990.