It was built with the idea this city hall would last 20 years.

But 128 years later, the municipal building in Bay City remains open for business.

The four-story Richardsonian Romanesque Revival-style building is made from Michigan and Indiana limestone, sandstone and granite, with a clock tower that stands 180 feet above the city. The first City Commission meeting was March 22, 1897. Besides the commission, City Hall also housed the police station, water works and library.

"Most municipal buildings have moved out of their historic buildings because of the change of building codes or because of disasters," said Jill Pfeiffer, the co-director of the Bay City Historical Society. "This is really unusual that the same municipal building is being used hundreds of years later for the same use.

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