More than 140 buildings across Ottawa threw open their doors this weekend for the 17th annual Doors Open Ottawa.
The weekend celebrates architectural and historical buildings in the capital.
Seventeen new buildings including Hydro Ottawa’s Chaudière Falls generating station were added this year. Interest for a tour was so high at this facility- there was an hour and a half wait to get inside.
Debbie Pagurek took a tour. “It’s was really exciting to see this facility we have never had an opportunity to see. I have lived here in Ottawa all my life, and it’s really great to have Doors Open,” she says.
Elections Canada Distribution Centre, Ottawa Birth and Wellness Centre, and the OC Transpo Bus and Train Simulator Training Facility were also added this year.
Some of the popular sites include the Supreme Court of Canada, Shopify’s headquarters, as well as the Bank of Canada.
Dave McIlhagga and his family are spending the day touring various locations. He says, “Sometimes you spend a lot of time seeing the rest of the world around us instead of what is in your own backyard.”
Caroline Pawluyk-Carriere took her 3-year old son Adrien to see a Hercules aircraft at the Canadian Aviation and Space Museum. “He came last year with his dad, so we came back. it’s a great opportunity for them to look at the planes, look at the history of aviation and flying.”
Doors Open Ottawa has welcomes more than a million visitors since it began in 2002.
Organizers said this year could draw up to 80-thousand people. Final numbers are expected to be released on Monday.
Click here for a full list of buildings.