Workers first laid out streets and sidewalks, then began construction of public and commercial structures. Seeking to build an "immediate" city with the mien of an established metropolis, developers insisted on strict construction standards, including requirements that no wooden structure of less than two stories be allowed on Broadway street, which had been designated as the city's primary commercial artery. In a clear statement of Gary's early identity as a company town, city planners sited city hall and the public library flanking Broadway, just north of Fifth Avenue, and immediately facing the main mill entrance.

Photographer: U. S. Steel Corp.
Source: Calumet Regional Archives, Indiana University Northwest, Gary (CRA-42-101-063)