The Municipal Building, also known as Youth & Shelter Services, is a historic building located in

Ames, Iowa Ames () is a city in Story County, Iowa, United States, located approximately north of Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines in central Iowa. It is the home of Iowa State University (ISU). According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Ames ha ...

, United States. It is significant for its association with the

Progressive Movement Progressivism is a left-leaning political philosophy and reform movement that seeks to advance the human condition through social reform. Adherents hold that progressivism has universal application and endeavor to spread this idea to huma ...

reforms implemented by the city in the early 20th century. with Previous to the construction of this facility in 1916 the city council, mayor, municipal offices, fire department and the police department, including the city jail and police court, were all housed in separate buildings. They were combined here in an effort to increase efficiency, professionalism, and the scope of city services. Per the Progressive Movement, all of these functions were housed in different zones in the building. The fire department was located on the backside of the building, and the archways where the fire engines doors were located are still visible. The two-story, brick, Neoclassical style building was designed by the

Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

architectural firm of

Liebbe, Nourse & Rasmussen Liebbe, Nourse & Rasmussen was an architectural firm in the U.S. state of Iowa. They designed Kromer Flats built in 1905. It designed courthouses, commercial buildings, and residences. Several are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic ...

. It was built by J. E. Tusant of Des Moines for $37,310. It remained the seat of local government until 1990 when it moved into the present

city hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

. The building sat empty for several years before it was purchased by Youth & Shelter Services, a local human services agency, for their offices. It was individually listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1997. It was included as a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

in the

Ames Main Street Historic District Ames Main Street Historic District is a nationally recognized historic district located in Ames, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. At the time of its nomination it included 81 resources (of ...

in 2018. Includes maps, historic photos, and nine photos from 2017-2018.

References

Government buildings completed in 1916 Buildings and structures in Ames, Iowa National Register of Historic Places in Story County, Iowa City and town halls on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa Fire stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa Neoclassical architecture in Iowa Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Iowa {{Iowa-struct-stub

See also

References