The Huntsville City Council on Thursday approved an agreement to acquire the former federal courthouse on Holmes Avenue.

It will not cost the city any money.

The acquisition is a land swap. The city donated the 4.76 acres for the U.S. Courthouse that opened earlier this year at 660 Gallatin St. SW near the Huntsville Hospital medical district. In exchange for that land, the city will receive ownership of the former courthouse at 101 Holmes Ave. NE.

“The former courthouse is an important asset for our community and the city looks forward to how it can be used in the future,” Mayor Tommy Battle said. “It is important to the city that its future uses respect the historical integrity of the building.”

The city has not determined a use for the former courthouse, which opened in 1936 and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

The Neo-Classical Revival-style building opened as a U.S. post office, as well as a courthouse and federal office building. The agreement includes protections for the historically significant elements of the building, both interior and exterior, the city said.

The historic mural that hung in the main courtroom has been moved to the new courthouse.