77 North Front Street

77 North Front Street is a municipal office building of Columbus, Ohio, in the city's downtown Civic Center.

The original building was designed by the Allied Architects Association of Columbus in the Second Renaissance Revival style.

The overall style was intended to match the neighboring Columbus City Hall and Joseph P. Kinneary United States Courthouse.

[1] The entablature above includes a frieze reading "Dedicated to justice for all in the firm belief that obedience to law is freedom".

[5] The building was constructed with two stone lion sculptures, nicknamed Patience and Perseverance, first installed at the original front entrance.

[10] Referred to in plans as the Safety Building, it was named the Central Police Station during construction in 1928,[11] with an address of 120 West Gay Street.

[12] In the following year, the Columbus Fire Department also announced it was moving its headquarters into the police station building.

The district was determined to be eligible for the National Register on September 14, 1988, due to its association with community planning, engineering, government, and transportation in the city, and for its Art Deco, Neoclassical, and Renaissance Revival architecture.

Beginning in 2000, the building's windows and roof were replaced with modern, energy-efficient materials while preserving their original external appearances.

The most visible portion of the renovation included construction of a five-story curtain wall wrapping from its east to north sides, adding a new 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m2) space.

77 N. Front (left), among other municipal offices and the City Commons park
One of the two lion sculptures
Former main entrance, looking northeast