[12] On 21 December 1889, the foundation stone was laid for the new Town Hall, designed in the Victorian Italianate style by C. Hawkins and built by Edward Christie.

[18][19][20] Following incorporation, the council area developed a strong industrial character similar to its northern neighbours of Alexandria, Waterloo and St Peters.

[22] However, when council submitted this request to the state Minister for Public Works, Arthur Griffith, and the Commonwealth Postmaster General, Josiah Thomas, it was rejected based on the view that "Ascot" was a term already well-used for place names.

[23][24] The council established a reputation for its probity and prudent financial management, at a time when the small Sydney municipalities were often struggling to keep up with infrastructure demands, population growth and political infighting.

The Construction & Local Government Journal praised Mascot council in this vein in a March 1920 editorial, noting "Mascot is essentially a working man's suburb, but the fashionable socialism of Labor Government does not appear to find favor with the sturdy, thrifty working men and intelligent women who have votes in this Municipality, and the reason is not very far to seek, for it is a remarkable circumstance that nearly all the residents own their own homes.

"[25] At the same time, planning had begun for the construction of a larger public airfield at Mascot, with the Commonwealth Government purchasing 65 hectares for this purpose in 1921.

Indeed, the Mayor in 1920, Thomas Hicks, declared: "The year has marked a new era for the Municipality of Mascot in the establishment of an aerodrome by Australian Aircraft & Engineering, on the area between Cook's River and Old Botany Road.