Labour disputes. Fights among city council. Contractor scandals. Public plebiscites. Do these conflicts sound all too familiar in today’s business climate? Interestingly enough, they filled the Toronto papers and many a front parlour for almost 20 years during the construction of Old City Hall in the late 1800s.

This distinguished Romanesque building on the corner of Queen and Bay Streets began its history as a courthouse designed by Toronto’s own E.J. Lennox. Shortly thereafter, City Hall and courthouse decided to share the building. When it finally opened on Sept 18, 1899 it had gone over-budget by almost two million dollars!

The magnificent brown and gray stone exterior required stones from the province of New Brunswick on Canada’s East Coast and from Credit River Valley outside Toronto. Imagine a train nine miles long filled with quarried stones. Next, picture using 8,354 barrels of cement to keep the stones in place. Unlike other courthouses of the period around North America, Old City Hall is far more ornamental. Watch for the intricately carved foliage and grotesquely carved faces of politicians above the front steps.

Step through the doors into a picturesque hall impressive for its craftsmanship. Huge Italian marble columns created by Italian craftsmen rise from a mosaic floor patterned in Buffalo, then transported to Toronto. The impressive stained glass window facing the main entrance carries the Coat of Arms in the upper panel together with Toronto’s first motto "Industry, Integrity, Intelligence" composed years earlier by William Lyon Mackenzie, Toronto’s first mayor.

Old City Hall barely survived the wrecking ball in 1965 when council relocated to New City Hall. Ironically, it was declared a National Historic Site in 1989 and more recently celebrated its centennial birthday. Mayor John Shaw who opened Old City Hall stated, "…great buildings symbolize a people’s deeds and aspirations." Old City Hall reflects Toronto’s dynamic confidence.