BUILDING FEATURES

Council Chambers

The design of Council Chambers is bright and open, and speaks to the City's commitment to transparent government. There are many vantage points to monitor the meetings, including video screens in the lobby and several glass windows with views from outside on the plaza and in the atrium.

The audience sits in theater-style seating with 156 seats and additional standing room in the rear for 100 people. Large viewing screens in the room are used to display presentations and for closed captioning to aid the visually impaired.

Audience seating

Dais with band of oak

Mayor and City Council Members, along with the City Manager and City Attorney, sit at a raised dais facing the audience.

The dais, constructed of pecan veneer (the state tree) and filled with compressed straw, includes a decorative band on the outer edge of salvaged wood from the historic Treaty Oak. The oak band runs the length of the dais and is placed where most Council Members may rest their hands, thus putting them in touch with the City's history as they decide its future.

Two lecterns flank the dais and are used for the presenting speakers and citizen communications. A desk on the right side of the dais is reserved for the City Clerk.

Sixteen copper "clouds," bearing a resemblance to bat wings, hang from the ceiling and not only provide aesthetic interest, but also improve sound in the room with corrugated acoustic panels hidden inside them.

The Council Chambers is technically equipped and lighted as a television studio for the Channel 6 broadcasts. The room is also equipped with computers and technology for multimedia presentations.

A pecan counter runs along the front of the audience and has several plugs for staff to access the City’s computer network and for reporters to tap into the audio and video lines.

The west side of the room next to the dais doubles as a small stage to host the live music that occurs traditionally at 5:30 p.m. during each Council meeting.

Copper clouds and video monitors hang from the ceiling