London can be confusing to visitors, as the government in City Hall is sometimes mistaken for the government of the City of London, which has an office called the Lord Mayer of London and headquarters at Guildhall. Since 2002, City Hall has been located in a modern building in Southwark near Tower Bridge.

It is a curiously shaped building, not quite a sphere, more like a bulbous blob. It is a case of function over form; this is a building designed to be extremely energy-efficient, so this design brief dictated the unconventional shape of the structure.

Visitors can tour parts of City Hall Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to about 5:30 PM, and the exhibitions and events that take place there are free and open to the public.

A recent exhibit was in honour of Anti-Slavery Day; Londoner Pete Pattison displayed photographs he had taken to draw attention to the fact that slavery is not just a historic anomaly; exploitation and enslavement are the reality in many parts of the world, and there is great destruction wrought by slavery and human trafficking even in these modern times.

The energy-efficient nature of City Hall is truly remarkable. Its design is meant to reduce the surface area of the building to minimize both heat loss and solar gain.

Unlike most office buildings, City Hall has opening windows for natural ventilation.

The heat produced by computers and lighting is captured and recycled. Cold ground water drives the air conditioning system, eliminating the need for refrigeration and chillers.

These innovations plus the cooperation of those who work there have resulted in a building that uses one quarter the electricity consumed by buildings of a similar size.

Photovoltaic solar panels were installed at City Hall in 2007 to provide emission-free power.

City Hall is at the forefront of environmentally-responsible design, construction, and operation.

Address: 110 The Queen's Walk, Bankside, SE1 2AA

Telephone: 020 7983 4000

Opening Times: Members of the public may visit parts of City Hall Monday to Thursday 8.30am-6pm, Friday 8.30am-5.30pm, and on London Open House weekend in September.

Photo courtesy: loop_oh

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