PORT TOWNSEND – After two years away, the City Council returns Tuesday night to its 114-year-old meeting chambers, which sparkle anew following an extensive renovation project.
The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. inside the red brick building at 540 Water St.
The council chambers is on the second floor, just above the newly remodeled Jefferson County Historical Society Museum, which is now open daily.
The musty odor of ages gone by has left the state’s oldest City Hall building – built in 1892 on an $85,000 budget – which is on the list of National Historic Landmarks.
Instead, there’s the sweet aroma of a fresh hardwood shellacking and new red Oriental-style carpeting imported from London, England.
Original cedar railing and oak benches and desks gleam under a new ceiling with light fixtures that are replicas of older ones.
Fresh paint and richly stained wall paneling enhance the building’s original historic character.
“I hope that the dignity of the chambers can reflect dignity to the council, and I mean that very sincerely,” said Councilwoman Laurie Medlicott.
Medlicott and fellow Council member Geoff Masci each contributed $1,500 – a quarter of their annual gross pay on the council – to the City Hall renovation project.
