Drawings and Papers: 1984–1993
8 Boxes, 31 Oversize Folders and Items , 10 linear feet
On April 12, 1985, the Phoenix City Council set the goal of a world-wide architectural design competition for a new municipal complex that would attract national and international attention. The plan proposed a complex for the downtown that would include fire, criminal justice, and municipal buildings covering 214,000 square feet. The competition saw entries from internationally renowned architects such as Barton Myers, Michael Graves, Arata Isozaki, Ricardo Legorreta, Charles Moore, and Robert Stern. Myers was ultimately selected as the winner of the competition in October 1985. For various reasons the project was never completed and by 1991 the city abandoned the undertaking in favor of a more modest city hall facility that opened in November 1993.
The collection contains oversize drawings and a variety of textual records including reports, transcripts of jury hearings, correspondence, clippings, and other printed materials. Also, there are photographs and videocassette tapes regarding the competition. the oversize items are design boards that were submitted by the competition’s semi-finalists and finalists and include master plans, perspectives, site plans, floor plans, elevations, and axonometric drawings. The videocassettes include taped formal presentations by the four finalists--Myers, Isozaki, Graves, and Legoretta.