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Marin County Civic Center

Coordinates: 37°59′59″N 122°31′48″W / 37.99972°N 122.53000°W / 37.99972; -122.53000
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Marin County Civic Center
The Marin County Civic Center
Marin County Civic Center is located in California
Marin County Civic Center
Marin County Civic Center is located in the United States
Marin County Civic Center
LocationSan Rafael, California
Coordinates37°59′59″N 122°31′48″W / 37.99972°N 122.53000°W / 37.99972; -122.53000
Built1960
ArchitectFrank Lloyd Wright
Architectural styleModern Movement
NRHP reference No.91002055[1]
CHISL No.999[2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJuly 17, 1991
Designated NHLDJuly 17, 1991[3]
Designated CHISLMay 8, 1991[2]

The Marin County Civic Center, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, is located in San Rafael, California, the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. Groundbreaking for the Civic Center Administration Building took place in 1960, after Wright's death and under the watch of Wright's protégé, Aaron Green; it was completed in 1962. The Hall of Justice was begun in 1966 and completed in 1969. Veterans Memorial Auditorium opened in 1971, and the Exhibit Hall opened in 1976.

Located away from the former county seat in downtown San Rafael, the expansive complex stretches across two valleys just east of US 101.[4] Its pink stucco walls, blue roof and scalloped balconies are distinctive. The smaller wing is the county administration building and the larger wing is the Hall of Justice, joined by a round structure on a small hill that houses a branch of the Marin County Free Library.[5]

A battle between factions of the Marin County Board of Supervisors played out through the selection of the site and the architect, the financing of the project, and its eventual completion. The Marin County Civic Center is a state and National Historic Landmark.[6]

The nearby fairgrounds host the Marin County Fair in July.[7]

Architecture

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The selection of Frank Lloyd Wright in 1957 to design the Civic Center was controversial. The Civic Center project was Wright's largest public project, and encompassed an entire campus of civic structures. The post office was the only federal government project of Wright's career. Wright's design borrowed ideas and forms from Wright's Broadacre City concept, first published in 1932.[8]

Main building

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Entrances are controlled by vertical grills of gold-anodized metal (1963).

The principal structure consists of a four-story, 580-foot (180 m) long Administration Building and a three-story, 880-foot (270 m) long Hall of Justice at a lower elevation, joined at a 120-degree angle with an 80-foot (24 m) diameter rotunda. The Hall of Justice spans a small valley, arching twice over an access road and a parking area, while the Administration Building spans a smaller ravine. Both structures are entered through archways on their lower levels. The long principal facades are marked by shallow non-structural arches of decreasing span with each story. The arches, which are framed in metal with a stucco appliqué, overlap slightly at the lower level. On the intermediate level, they appear to stand on short slender gold-anodized columns, and on the top level, they become round openings with gold railings directly under the deep roof overhang. The railings themselves have a circular pattern. The bright blue roof is itself patterned with arched cut-outs and raised circular patterns The building wings are arranged as a barrel vault shape on either side of the central galley, asymmetrically disposed. Interior guardrails at the atrium are solid stucco with no metal elements. Entrances are controlled by vertical grills of gold-anodized metal with rounded tops and bottoms, rather than doors. The eaves are embellished with an arched fascia with small gold balls inset in each arch, a pattern repeated in the atria.[8]

Interior of Marin County Civic Center (2008).

The rotunda on the central hill houses the county library and a central cafeteria. Its 172-foot (52 m) gold spire was meant to house a radio transmitter, as well as the boiler plant's chimney. The interiors are arranged around open atria or "malls" as Wright called them, which allow natural light into the space. Originally open to the sky, the malls were later covered with skylights designed by William Wesley Peters.[8] Interior spaces featured glass walls to allow light to penetrate from the exterior and the atrium, and to follow through on Wright's philosophy of maximum openness of government activities.[9]

Wright's concept envisioned a gold-colored roof, which proved to be impossible to obtain in a long-lasting material. After Wright's death, Olgivanna Lloyd Wright chose a bright blue color that would weather well, gaining a softer color with age. The color choice, together with the pink stucco walls, was initially controversial, causing the building to become known as "Big Pink". The only large gold element is the spire at the rotunda.[10]

Accessory buildings

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The Post Office building is a one-story elliptical building near the entrance to the complex. Its facade repeats the arch motif, with circular embellishments on its canopy. The interior features an elliptical lobby.[8]

Veterans Memorial Auditorium (2007).

The nearby Veterans' Memorial Auditorium was designed by the Taliesin Associated Architects and was completed in 1971 in a manner compatible with the main complex.[8] The auditorium was designed for use by the county fair with a combination of flat-floor exhibition space and tiered seating spaces, using a compromise plan devised by Wesley Peters, George Izenour, and Aaron Green.[11] The main hall seats 1960 in an amphitheater arrangement.[12] A separate Showcase Theater seats 300, and the exhibition hall can accommodate up to 2000 patrons.[13]

The original Hall of Justice design incorporated the Marin County Jail. As the jail outgrew its space a number of proposals were advanced for a new facility adjoining the Civic Center. A new, mostly underground jail was completed in 1994 in the hilltop immediately to the west of the Hall of Justice, designed by AECOM with 222 cells and 363 beds. The jail connects to the Hall of Justice by an underground link.[14] The design concept was originally suggested by Aaron Green.[15] The final design was reached after unsuitable underground and above-ground designs were rejected in the 1980s.[16] Natural lighting of interior spaces is provided by skylit light wells over the common space of each of six pods.[17]

A Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit train station was constructed nearby which bears the same name.[18]

Politics

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Main Civic Center building, Hall of Justice on the left and the Administration Building on the right of the rotunda and spire

The Marin Civic Center arose from a desire to consolidate county services at a single location, away from the center of San Rafael. The idea was combined with a proposed county fairground, and 140 acres (57 ha) of the Scettrini ranch were purchased in 1956 for $551,416 along U.S. Highway 101 near Santa Venetia. The same year a selection committee was convened to select an architect, interviewing 26 firms, with a strong showing from Richard Neutra. Frank Lloyd Wright was not interviewed and had indicated that he would not participate in a competitive selection. At the instigation of supervisor Vera Schultz,[19][20][21][22] committee members and four county supervisors met Wright in June 1957 when he visited Berkeley to lecture at the University of California. Schultz was the most ardent backer of Frank Lloyd Wright as prospective civic center architect. If not for Schultz's support in the face of heated opposition, Wright's version of the center would never have been built.[22] Schultz had the support of three of the men on the board, but the fourth, Supervisor William D. Fusselman,[23][24][25] a conservative candy[26] manufacturer from San Anselmo,[27] attempted to prevent[28] Wright from getting the commission.[22] On June 27 the Board of Supervisors voted 4–1, with Fusselman[29] dissenting, to retain Wright. Wright arrived in San Rafael two days later. He was 90 years old.[8]

Fusselman, the holdout supervisor, represented a conservative base that was opposed to the rapid pace of change in Marin County and to the proposed move from the center of San Rafael. Wright's fee of 10% of the construction cost drew criticism, as it was 2% higher than that proposed by other firms. Fusselman found a supporter in Wisconsin State Assemblyman Carroll Metzner, a virulent opponent of Wright in Wisconsin who appeared with Fusselman on local radio in Marin to denounce Wright's "socialist" design philosophy. Fusselman was also supported by the local chapter of the American Legion. At the board meeting that confirmed Wright's appointment Legionniare Bryson Reinhardt read into the record a denunciation of Wright as a supporter of Communism during World War II, prompting an angry response from Wright, who threatened to walk away from the project.[30] The county clerk, a Fusselman ally who had helped to organize the Legionnaires' protest, lost Wright's contract. A carbon copy of the contract was signed by the president of the Board of Supervisors, and Wright stayed.[30] Opponents demanded a referendum on the design, which was counteracted by an effective public relations campaign by supporters. Wright was directed to proceed with detailed design on April 28, 1958. In March 1959 Wright was appointed to design the post office. On April 9, 1959, Wright died, aged 91. Supervisor Fusselman attempted to obtain the plans as they were at Wright's death and to cut the fee by 2%. Both efforts were unsuccessful. Design of the first phase was complete in September 1959, directed by Wesley Peters and Aaron Green. The low bidder was Rothschild, Raffin and Weirick of San Francisco for $3,638,735 for the building and $596,470 for site development.[8]

Ground was broken on February 15, 1960, at a ceremony attended by Wright's widow, Olgivanna, Wright's son Lloyd Wright and grandson Eric Lloyd Wright, but not by Fusselman.[9] The June 1960 election changed the makeup of the Marin County Board of Supervisors so that, in the following January, the new board voted to halt work on the project and possibly to convert[31] it for use as a hospital, to replace a hospital that had been condemned.[9] However, a poll by the Marin Independent Journal showing overwhelming support for the project pressured board members to change their minds. This, together with a negative report on conversion to hospital[32] use by an independent architectural firm, led to the lifting of the stop-work order, construction resumed a week later.[33][34] The contractor sued for time and money lost during the stoppage.[9] There was no further political opposition. The post office was the first building to be completed, and was dedicated on May 19, 1962. The Administration Building was dedicated on October 13, 1962, again without Fusselman.[8][9]

The Hall of Justice was financed by a special bond passed by referendum in 1965, which allocated $7.75 million to the $11.756 million cost of the new wing. Work by the contractor, Robert E. McKee of Dallas, Texas, was scheduled to be complete by October 1968. Strikes, bad weather, delivery problems for materials and design changes pushed the proposed completion to July 1969. The Hall of Justice was finally dedicated on December 13, 1969.[9]

Landmark designation

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Spire and cut-outs

In recognition of its exceptional design the Marin County Civic Center main building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 17, 1991, and was designated a National Historic Landmark the same day.[35][33] The designation as a National Historic Landmark came thirty years after completion of the first construction phase, compared with the more usual 50-year term before a site is considered eligible for the National Register.[36] It is also a California Historical Landmark, Number 999.[2] In 2015 and 2016, it and other Wright buildings were considered for designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[37][38] In 2016, the nomination to the World Heritage List was not approved by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee. A revised 2018 proposal removed the Marin County Civic Center from the list of nominated buildings.[39] That list of Wright buildings was approved in 2019.[40]

Attacks

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Main article: Marin County courthouse incident

In August 1970 the Civic Center, which houses the Marin County Superior Court, was the scene of an attempted jailbreak led by Jonathan Jackson, the brother of Black Panther militant George Jackson, demanding the release of the so-called "Soledad Brothers". Jackson released several prisoners in the courtroom and the group took a number of hostages, including the presiding judge, Harold Haley. While they were attempting to escape, four people, including Judge Haley and Jonathan Jackson, were killed. The story, which featured dramatic photographs, was carried in newspapers nationally.[41][42] Black Panther activist Angela Davis was eventually tied to the case, prompting her to go on the run before being caught and ultimately acquitted on charges of supplying firearms to Jonathan Jackson.[43][44] Aaron Green designed a landscaped area near the Hall of Justice as a memorial to Judge Haley.[45] Later that same year, in October 1970, the Weather Underground detonated a bomb at the Courthouse in retaliation.[46]

[edit]
A band plays at the Marin Civic Center auditorium
[edit]
  • Looking up at the Civic Center.
    Looking up at the Civic Center.
  • Marin Transit serves the Civic Center.
    Marin Transit serves the Civic Center.
  • The spire atop the Civic Center.
    The spire atop the Civic Center.
  • A view of the roof.
    A view of the roof.
  • Marker for the Civic Center.
    Marker for the Civic Center.
  • The red tile features Frank Lloyd Wright's signature.
    The red tile features Frank Lloyd Wright's signature.
  • National Register of Historic Places marker.
    National Register of Historic Places marker.

See also

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Further reading

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  • Green, Aaron G.; DeNevi, Donald P. (1990), An Architecture for Democracy: The Marin County Civic Center, Grendon Publishing, ISBN 978-0-96-250290-3
  • Storrer, William Allin (2006), The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion, Revised Edition, University of Chicago Press, pp. 415–417, ISBN 978-0-22-677621-7
  • "Frank Lloyd Wright and the Marin County Civic Center". Anne T. Kent California Room. Marin County Free Library. Archived from the original on August 6, 2020.
  • "Marin County Civic Center". Registration Form. National Register of Historic Places.

References

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  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ a b c "Marin County Civic Center". Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
  3. ^ "National Historic Landmarks Program". tps.cr.nps.gov. Archived from the original on October 8, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  4. ^ "Oral History: Takeshita, Wat, April 12, 2004" (Interview). Marin County Library. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  5. ^ "ArchDaily Classics: Marin Civic Center / Frank Lloyd Wright". ArchDaily. March 14, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  6. ^ "Marin County Civic Center". Registration Form. National Register of Historic Places.
  7. ^ "Marin County Fair". Retrieved September 12, 2013.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Woodbridge, Sally B. "National Historic Landmark Nomination Form: Marin County Civic Center". National Park Service. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  9. ^ a b c d e f "A Place for the People's Government". Marin County Historical Society Bulletin. March 1990. Archived from the original on May 11, 2012.
  10. ^ Green & DeNevi (1990), p. 94
  11. ^ Green & DeNevi (1990), pp. 104-105
  12. ^ "Marin Veterans' Memorial Auditorium". San Rafael Patch. Archived from the original on June 20, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  13. ^ Rapaport, Richard (February 1, 2011). "Frank Lloyd Wright's Civic Center Flip Side". San Rafael Patch. Archived from the original on March 30, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  14. ^ "Marin County Jail". AECOM. Archived from the original on January 31, 2010. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  15. ^ "Marin County Civic Center Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright". Marin County. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  16. ^ Goldberger, Paul (March 25, 1990). "Architecture View; The Jailhouse Blues: The Ballad of the Marin County Jail". New York Times. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  17. ^ Rapaport, Richard (December 24, 2010). "The Marin County Civic Center Part I: The Jail: Wright or Wrong". San Rafael Patch. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  18. ^ Prado, Mark (June 26, 2017). "SMART offers free 'preview' service starting Thursday". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  19. ^ "Vera, Mary, and Mr. Wright" (PDF). Marin County. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  20. ^ "Marin County Supervisor, Vera Schultz, advocate for the selection of Frank Lloyd Wright as the architect for the Marin County Civic Center [photograph]". Calisphere. 1974. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  21. ^ "Oral History: Schultz, Vera, March 28, 1983" (Interview). Marin County Library. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  22. ^ a b c "New Details, Old Controversy". Marin Magazine. Marin County, California. October 27, 2014. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  23. ^ United States Congress Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs Subcommittee on Public Lands (1960). Point Reyes National Seashore: Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Public Lands of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, United States Senate, Eighty-sixth Congress, Second Session, on S. 2428, a Bill to Establish the Point Reyes National Seashore in the State of California and for Other Purposes, Kentfield, California, April 14, 1960. U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  24. ^ File:Marin County Civic Center Cornerstone.jpg
  25. ^ "Mayor Fusselman presiding". San Anselmo, CA.
  26. ^ Radford, Evelyn Morris (1972). "The genius and the county building : how Frank Lloyd Wright came to Marin County, California, and glorified San Rafael". ScholarSpace. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Library. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  27. ^ Michels, Spencer (October 6, 2022). "Marin Voice: 60 years later, Wright's Civic Center is still a conversation piece". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  28. ^ Anne T. Kent California Room (September 15, 2020). "56 Years Ago: "Red Charge Stirs Wright to a Boil"". Newsletter @ medium.com. Marin County Free Library.
  29. ^ "William Fusselman from San Anselmo in 1940 Census District 21-13". www.archives.com. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  30. ^ a b Rapaport, Richard (January 13, 2011). "The "Wright Summer" of 1957". San Rafael Patch. Archived from the original on June 9, 2011. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  31. ^ Niekerken, Bill Van (September 12, 2016). "How Frank Lloyd Wright's Marin Civic Center was finally built". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  32. ^ Kligman, David (April 4, 1999). "Renowned and in the Red, Marin Library in Danger of Closing". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  33. ^ a b Green & DeNevi (1990), p. 75
  34. ^ King, John (October 9, 2012). "Marin Civic Center no easy task". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  35. ^ "Marin County Civic Center". HMdb.org.
  36. ^ "National Register Bulletin" (VIII. PROPERTIES IN HISTORIC DISTRICTS). National Park Service. U.S. Department of the Interior. p. 10. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  37. ^ "Frank Lloyd Wright Buildings". World Heritage Center: Tentative Lists. UNESCO. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  38. ^ Rapaport, Richard (January 25, 2011). "Getting Onboard the World Heritage List". San Rafael Patch. Archived from the original on March 30, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  39. ^ "Eight Buildings Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright Nominated to the UNESCO World Heritage List". Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. December 20, 2018.
  40. ^ "Eight Frank Lloyd Wright Sites Inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List". Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. July 7, 2019.
  41. ^ "Courtroom Escape Attempt/Convicts, Trial Judge Slain" (Associated Press). Sarasota Herald. August 8, 1970.
  42. ^ Walsh, Jason (August 6, 2010). "A shock to the system" (From the Sun vaults, Aug.12-18, 1970). Pacific Sun. p. 9.
  43. ^ Caldwell, Eric (June 5, 1972). "Angela Davis Acquitted on All Charges" (PDF). The New York Times. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  44. ^ Burns, Alex (June 24, 2003). "Angela Davis defined a revolution". Miami Times.
  45. ^ Green & DeNevi (1990), pp. 102-103
  46. ^ Graaf, Beatrice de (March 15, 2011). Evaluating Counterterrorism Performance: A Comparative Study. Routledge. ISBN 9781136806551. Retrieved October 14, 2018 – via Google Books.
  47. ^ "Marin County Civic Center Self-Guided Tour" (PDF). Marin County. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  48. ^ Szostak, Phil (2018). The Art of Solo: A Star Wars Story. New York: Abrams. pp. 150, 152. ISBN 978-1-4197-2745-0. OCLC 1037353117.
  49. ^ "Frampton Comes Alive!" (Recording Locations). AllMusic. 1976. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  50. ^ "In the Dark" (Credits). The Grateful Dead Disc. Retrieved June 11, 2016.
  51. ^ Kligman, David (April 4, 1999). "Renowned and in the Red, Marin Library in Danger of Closing". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
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