How civic buildings shape our cities

By : J. David Chapman/July 17, 2025

This week, I had the privilege of attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Edmond‘s new City Hall—this time not as a councilmember, but as a citizen and former public servant. Standing on the steps of this striking new civic building, I couldn’t help but reflect on how places like this do more than house government—they shape the very soul of a city.

In my book subURBAN!, I write about the role civic buildings play in anchoring downtowns. They are more than administrative necessities. City halls, courthouses, post offices, schools, and libraries are public statements—monuments to shared purpose, accessible to all. When built intentionally and placed centrally, they send a message: this community matters.

Edmond’s new City Hall is part of a larger vision. By investing in a new courthouse, parking garage, and eventually repurposing the land where the old facilities stood, the city is signaling its commitment to a vibrant, walkable downtown. These projects were funded through a mix of loans and bonds—practical financing tools that allow a city to reinvest in itself. They also unlock future opportunities for public-private partnerships that can bring housing, retail, and civic life into closer harmony.

Civic buildings, especially in suburban cities striving for urban character, are essential ingredients. They bring employees downtown daily, provide destinations for residents, and offer backdrops for civic events. Most importantly, they create place. A sense of identity, belonging, and permanence is hard to manufacture—but civic buildings do just that.

We often celebrate the restaurants, coffee shops, and festivals that give downtowns energy—and rightly so. But these things flourish best when rooted in stable civic infrastructure. A vibrant urban core isn’t created overnight; it’s built piece by piece, through public leadership and investment.

To see Edmond take this step forward—both symbolically and practically—is encouraging. I’m proud to have played a small role in the early phases of this journey during my time on the council, and I look forward to seeing how this new space becomes part of the city’s daily life.

Civic buildings may not be flashy, but they’re foundational. And when thoughtfully designed and strategically located, they shape the built environment—and the community—for generations.

J. David Chapman, Ph.D., is chair of finance & professor real estate at The University of Central Oklahoma (jchapman7@uco.edu).