These Two Illinois Public Buildings Were Ranked Ugliest in U.S.

Not every city can have a government building with grand hallways in marble or historic courthouses with historic architecture.

Some of these structures are just plain and simple, or what one New Jersey-based real estate network would call ugly.

Survey Finds Harsh Opinions on Civic Architecture

According to the survey posted on NewJerseyRealEstateNetwork.com, there were more than 3,000 people who weighed in on which public buildings are the ugliest in the United States.

The results placed two of Illinois' public buildings in the "Ugly" Top 100, along with one from Wisconsin.

These Are the Top 5 Ugliest in the U.S.

Before we reveal which Illinois and Wisconsin towns made the ugly list, the TOP 5 ugliest of 2025 rank like this:

1. City of Flint Municipal Center, Flint, Michigan
2. Fresno County Superior Court, Fresno, California
3. Buffalo City Court, Buffalo, New York
4. Jackson County Courts Building, Pascagoula, Mississippi
5. Philadelphia Municipal Services Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Here's how the City of Flint Municipal Center received top scores for being unattractive:

It gets high marks for durability, but stylistically, it’s stuck in an era where civic buildings weren’t expected to be welcoming — just solid.

Illinois and Wisconsin Public Buildings are Ugly Too

While the survey didn't single out specific states with the worst public building designs, having both Illinois and Wisconsin represented in the Top 100 highlights how midwestern civic architecture is often criticized for having a basic, functional look.

Green Bay City Hall in Green Bay, Wisconsin, was ranked as the 33rd ugliest public building, but it is unclear whether the building would be more attractive if they painted it with Packers colors.

The 37th Ugliest Public Building is located in Peoria. It's the Peoria County Courthouse.

And the 56th Ugliest Public Building is the Winnebago County Circuit Court building in Rockford.

For the complete TOP 100 Ugliest Public Buildings in the U.S., CLICK HERE.