It was designed by noted Melbourne architect Charles Webb in Victorian Academic Classical style, featuring a wide facade of giant order Corinthian columns and pilasters, with a central portico and projecting pavilions at each corner, dominated by a very tall multi-stage clock tower.
The Town Hall was built on an elevated site, the centrepiece of a formally planned block, with a forecourt in the form of a small curved park.
It is considered one of Victoria's grandest town halls, symbolising the prosperity and confidence of South Melbourne last century.
That same year, the Federal Government created the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM), which became the main occupant of the building.
ANAM is the national centre for the further development of musicians with outstanding talent in Australia, and the hall has become a concert venue.