The west wing of the civic centre, now hosting the police station, and the monumental clock tower.

The Civic Centre in Southampton is the principle municipal services building for the city, and the home of Southampton City Council. Southampton is a city and major port situated on the south coast of England. ... This page discusses the English city of Southampton. ...

It hosts a police station, council offices, the Guildhall Guildhall venue, the well-endowed city art gallery, and the city library. A police station is a building which serves as the headquarters of a police force or unit which serves a specific district. ... An art gallery or art museum is a space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art, and usually primarily paintings and sculpture. ... Modern-style library In its traditional sense, a library is a collection of books and periodicals. ...

History

The north (arts) wing of the civic centre, hosting the art gallery and library.

Since the 1890s, there was debate in the council over the housing of the borough offices: all departments were currently scattered around the town, making co-ordination and timely response fairly difficult.

The first serious attempt at constructing a civic centre to accommodate these scattered departments occurred in 1924, when an Act of Parliament appropriated land. In a public meeting in the following year, however, the proposals, presented by mayor Sydney Kimber, were met with objections, including from notable residents, over its location, size, and practicality. 1924 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... In Westminster System parliaments, an Act of Parliament is a part of the law passed by the Parliament. ...

As a result, the plans were redesigned, with help from the then-president of the Royal Institute of British Architects, H Austen-Hall. Possible designs were displayed for public approval, and the designs of architect E Berry Webster were almost unanimously chosen. These involved four blocks, erected as separate contracts, but interconnected to create a distinct building. The plans were costed just within the £385,000 budget. In 1928, the necessary land was appropriated. The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects in the United Kingdom. ... As a unit of currency, the term pound originates from the value of a Troy pound weight (Latin libra), of high purity silver, and is the currency unit of a number of countries: Cyprus pound in Cyprus Egyptian pound in Egypt Lebanese pound in Lebanon Syrian pound in Syria British... 1928 was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

On 1 July 1930, Prince Albert, Duke of York laid the foundation stone. July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 183 days remaining. ... 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George) (December 14, 1895–February 6, 1952) was the third British monarch of the House of Windsor, reigning from December 11, 1936 to February 6, 1952. ...

The first block to be opened was the south block, the municipal offices. This too was opened by the Duke of York, and his wife, the Duchess of York, on 8 November 1932. HM Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother (née Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth (Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Windsor, née Bowes-Lyon) (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was the Queen consort of George VI of the United Kingdom from 1936 to 1952. ... November 8 is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 53 days remaining. ... 1932 is a leap year starting on a Friday. ...

The Guildhall (east wing), with collonaded façade.

The second block, opened on 3 November 1933, was the west block, the law courts. This building now hosts the city centre police station. This block included the famous clock tower, known colloquially at the time as Kimber's Chimney, after the mayor. November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ... 1933 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

The later components of the building were slightly later in development. Work on the Guildhall (the east wing) began in March 1934. The Guildhall was intended as a social event for municipal functions. Prior to this, some municipal functions were held on ocean liners that were moored in Southampton docks, including Cunard's Olympic. The Guildhall was opened on 13 February 1937, with 2000 people assembled in the main hall for the opening. An ocean liner is a large passenger ship, most typically a motorized vessel that undertakes longer voyages on the open sea primarily for the purpose of transporting people from one place to another. ... Dock can refer to several things: Places for the transfer of people and materials to, from, or between different forms of transport or working with transport: A maritime dock. ... The Cunard Line is the British cruise line that operates the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) and RMS Queen Mary 2 (QM2) cruise ships. ... Built for the White Star Line Company, the S.S. Olympic (or RMS Olympic) was a sister-ship to the ill-fated Titanic and Britannic. ... February 13 is the 44th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1937 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...

The final block was the north (arts) wing. This began later than the others, and late alterations to the designs were required to incorporate a public library, that was not originally planned for. This was opened in 1939. The expansion of this wing led to an increase in costs for the project, but the budget increase was approved by Parliament. This section today hosts the Central Library and the City Art Gallery. Modern-style library In its traditional sense, a library is a collection of books and periodicals. ... 1939 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

The south wing of the civic centre, containing mostly council offices.

External Links

• Southampton City Council (http://www.southampton.gov.uk/)