Quincy, Mass – Mayor Thomas Koch and Nauset Construction officially kicked-off the historic restoration of the City’s 169-year-old City Hall, believed to be the oldest functioning city hall in America, in a brief ceremony on Tuesday afternoon.
The $8 million project includes a full restoration of the 1844 building’s granite façade and a complete renovation of its long-deteriorating interior. The “Great Hall,” once the primary public meeting space for City residents and the City Council but reduced in size over the years, will be restored to its original stature and layout. New meeting space will be created for the City’s boards and commissions, as will exhibition space for any number of historic artifacts, including letters from John Adams, John Quincy Adams and John Hancock.
“Nauset Construction is honored to be a part of the project team that will restore this distinct and historically significant building back to it original state of grandeur,” said Anthony Papantonis, President of Nauset Construction.
Quincy City Hall is one of two historic renovation projects that Nauset is currently undertaking for the City of Quincy. In June, Nauset began the $10 million restoration of Coddington Hall that will transform the 1908 building into first class office space for the city’s school and IT operations.
“This is a long-overdue effort to save this beautiful and incredibly important building, and I’m proud that today we’re getting it done with the help of so many people working together,” said Mayor Koch.
Quincy-based Holmes & Edwards, Inc. is the architect for the historic restoration, which is expected to be completed by the fall of 2014.
