Save for a few workers filtering in and out of the city government and tourism offices currently housed in the vast Hall of Waters in Excelsior, Missouri, the building is quiet these days.

Visiting the hall 70 years ago, however, would have been a very different experience. Built in 1937 by the Public Works Administration for about $1 million, the Art Deco-style Hall of Waters was considered to be the country’s most progressive health center during its time.

The city of Excelsior Springs (current population: around 11,000) was built on about 40 different wells and springs of water that were naturally fortified with minerals such as calcium, saline, and iron manganese. The Hall’s purpose was to make all of them accessible together in one place while espousing the then-popular idea that hot springs had the power to treat and heal a variety of ailments, such as polio and rheumatism.

"[The Hall of Waters] was designed not only to house the building, which would provide spa and health services, as well as a swimming pool and hydrotherapy pool," explains city councilwoman Sonya Morgan, "but also to bring those mineral waters together to be able to taste them, and know what we were founded upon."

In addition to the in-house health services and regulation swimming pool that was large enough to host championship events, the Hall was also a bottling and distribution facility for Excelsior Springs’ mineral water, sold both locally and around the world. The popularity of health spas and hot springs began to decline in the 1960s as more modern medical treatments took hold, and the treatment facilities at the Hall of Waters were eventually shuttered.

Now, the city government of Excelsior Springs is hoping to revitalize the Hall of Waters in a way that will both honor its history and make it a destination for tourists drawn to the city’s heritage. The city recently issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) in the hopes of finding a collaborator for a public-private partnership that would allow for a number of essential upgrades and repairs to be made to the structure, while at the same time fostering its growth into a bigger source of commerce and revenue for the community.

"We want better utilization of the building," Morgan says, explaining that even though the city currently houses its planning and zoning, finance, and city council offices in the 50,000-square-foot hall, they have far more space than they need.

One of the highest priorities for the building’s restoration is a new HVAC system, which will cost an estimated $2 to $2.5 million. Two boilers originally served the heating and cooling needs of the high-ceilinged space, but replacement parts are becoming increasingly hard to find. In addition, the hall has been damaged by flood waters over the years, and a lack of airflow has contributed to moisture problems.

So what is the city of Excelsior Springs envisioning for this next chapter in its most renowned building’s history? Morgan suggests that it could be a health center again, but that the city government is open to "anything and everything."

"We’ve never done anything like this before," she says, adding that the Hall of Waters engenders a strong sense of pride in the Excelsior Springs community. "There’s no other building like it in the entire United States."

The RFP deadline is June 22, and you can learn more at the city’s website.