One of the few reasons to go to downtown Burbank: a streamline moderne masterwork of civic architecture

Added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 18, 1996

“I can’t wait to visit the seat of Burbank’s municipal government!” is something nobody has said, ever. City Hall is the kind of place that most people would only visit to stage a protest. In the case of Burbank’s City Hall, I recommend you find a reason to go. Get married. Apply for a building permit. Reserve a local park for your kid’s quinceañera. Whatever you gotta do, because this building is gorgeous, the kind of place where I would apply for a boring low-wage clerical job just so I could go there every day for work.

The Burbank City Hall was finished in 1943, a time when art deco was losing its lustre. You’d never know it, looking at the ornate detail that architects William Allen & W. George Lutzi put into this streamline moderne beauty. The symmetry of the facade gives it the aura of an ancient Egyptian palace, with a decorative grille running down its central tower (topped by a standoffish eagle). Black and gold accents on the doors and railways play up the tasteful fanciness; bas relief sculptures adorn the front and Third Street side. There’s also a giant fountain with ornamental fish spewing water (the black and turquoise tiles were added in the ‘80s). 

There’s a “cathedral of commerce” vibe to the inside, like the Chrysler Building had a kid brother who moved to sunny SoCal. 20 different types of marble were used to construct the floor, walls and staircase, and one of two Hugo Ballin murals extends upwards, extolling Burbank’s main industries (airplanes, movies, agriculture & power – if Ballin painted it now, he’d have to add an Ikea shelving unit). Ballin is well known for his murals at the Griffith Observatory and Wilshire Boulevard Temple. 

Next time I visit, I’ll try and finagle my way to the Council Chamber, where another Ballin (based on Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms” speech) watches over all the elected local officials going about their business. A solemn historical note – when the City of Burbank renovated City Hall in 2001, they unveiled the restored Ballin murals one day before September 11.

Recommended Reading

+Burbank City Hall @ NRHP website

+Burbank City Hall @ LA Conservancy

+A Rare Visit Up the Tower of the Burbank City Hall (WesClark.com)