City
Though there was some opposition to this move because a village seemed more appealing to visitors seeking a quiet escape and healing waters, the population was simply growing too large to remain as a village any longer.
By 1900, City Hall had been established in a building on the South East Corner of Clinton and South streets. Elections of every public official were held on a yearly basis. The entire city's fire department consisted of a chief and four assistant officers, and the entire police department was only a chief and three patrolmen.
In 1966, the Common Council voted to construct a new City Hall, and Waukesha's municipal government has resided in that building ever since. Today, many of the issues that Waukesha's Common Council grapple with are related to the complex task of managing a multi-million dollar municipal government. Municipal Government continues to expand today, while new buildings to house the Police Department were completed in 1993, another building for the Park and Recreation Department was completed in 1998. The Engineering Department has moved into the old Police building, across from City Hall, and departments within City Hall continue to expand and grow. The Fire Department has added a whole host of new personnel and tools in the last few years, and the public Library opened it's remodeled doors to the public in 1988. In 1990 an information systems department was added to City Hall, ushering the government into the information age. Meanwhile, the continued operations of the planning department and the attorney's office have awarded a solid border agreement with Waukesha's neighbors which should clarify and solidify Waukesha's boundaries by the early 21st century. With these improvements, the leaders and workers under the City Of Waukesha have provided the "machinery" to keep Waukesha's city government moving for years.
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In 1846, immediately following the decision for county seat, the Village of Prairieville changed names to the Village of Waukesha. Then, on February 4, 1896, by a referendum vote of 1036 to 741, the City of Waukesha was incorporated from a village.
"Gentlemen of the Common Council and Citizens of the City of Waukesha - We convene at a time of great importance in the life of our quiet and prosperous city. The meeting of this council, with its members qualified practically ends our village government, under which we lived long and quite well. You will all agree with me that our task of setting at work the machinery of our new city government is a matter of no small movement." - John Brehm Jr., first Mayor of the City of Waukesha.
With Waukesha's growth in the first30 years of the 20th century, the various commissions, committees and boards of the Common Council needed to adapt to the city's ever changing needs. By 1930, the City Hall Offices had moved to the corner of Delafield and North streets, approximately where the Water Utility stands today. There it lived in the brick building which had previously served as Waukesha's hospital.