Engineering and architectural design for the building was directed by Francisco Gil Capó under the oversight of Mayor Salvador de Vives.

[6] The interior has two courtyards designed in the typical architecture of the time and a spacious stairway leads to the main hall of the Municipal Legislature and the office of the mayor.

[6] By 1848, the population of the Spanish settlement at Ponce had grown sufficiently to merit recognition as a city by Queen Isabel II.

Most importantly, the vocabulary utilized is purely the Neoclassical Isabelino of the Spanish 19th century, representative of the works performed by the Royal Corps of Engineers of Spain and satisfying the demands of the growing aristocratic population of Ponce.

[7] According to the Laws of the Indies, established in the 16th century to regulate the colonization of towns in the Americas, a settlement was to be planned around a central plaza, with the Holy Catholic church facing westward and the town hall or "Cabildo" (seat of government power) either opposite or adjacent, emphasizing the major and joint role of the church and state in Hispanic society.

Although the interior has been altered during the 20th century in response to the growing needs of the municipal government, the exterior has maintained its individual and contextual integrity.

At the ground level, a very distinctive feature of the City Hall is the continuous, projecting water table which creates the appearance of a fortification wall.

The single bay sections have smooth rustication only at the ground floor, terminating at a continuous string course which divides this level from the upper.

[8] All openings other than the main entrance and the second and fourth bays at ground level are articulated with full-height, wooden, double doors with louvre panels.