Chandler City Hall, Chandler, Arizona

By Alanna Malone

For more than 20 years, Chandler, Arizona, had been setting aside funds to pay for a new municipal complex. The city wished to go beyond the expected program for such a building by creating a mixed-use facility to cater to the community's needs and serve as an icon of good design and sustainability. The resulting 137,000-square-foot civic center, which opened in late 2010, is the pride of the city and aspires to become one of the first LEED Platinum-certified city halls in the country. Designed by SmithGroup, the program includes the city's department offices, council chambers, art gallery, copy center, television studio, outdoor mezzanine, courtyard, and parking facility.