[1][9] It was designed by James Anderson Williamson in the neoclassical style, built in ashlar stone at a cost of £8,000 and was officially opened by the subsequent Lord Provost, Sir Robert Kirk Inches, on 30 October 1914.

The bays in the central section were flanked by full height Ionic order columns supporting an entablature inscribed with the words "Portobello Town Hall", and a pediment with a Diocletian window in the tympanum.

[11] The first public event was a concert held later in 1914 in aid of Belgian refugees displaced by the German invasion of Belgium,[12] and, in May 1915, the former member of parliament, Sir George McCrae used the town hall for rallies to recruit young soldiers for the Royal Scots.

[13] The future Prime Minister, Edward Heath, gave a speech to Young Conservatives at the town hall in March 1970.

[16] The city council put the building on the market for lease in February 2020,[17] and, following a competitive process, it agreed to enter into exclusive talks with a local community organisation known as Portobello Central in May 2021.