Dave Scharf, Centretown News
This sloping architectural feature will be entrance of the relaunched Bank of Canada Museum.The Bank of Canada Museum has publicly acknowledged that the strange-looking and still-unfinished structure looming near the corner of Bank and Wellington streets will be the new entrance to the history centre – which is currently closed for reconstruction.
The former Canadian Currency Museum is known for its comprehensive collection of over 100,000 Canadian coins, tokens and paper money, as well as other artifacts capturing the history of money production, storing, measuring and accounting.
The museum seeks to educate the public on Canadian numismatic and economic history, according to its website.
The sloping architectural feature now being built is part of the ongoing renovation of the country’s central bank building on the southwest corner of Wellington and Bank.
The museum closed its doors in July 2013 for the construction of an expanded and revamped downtown heritage attraction, also part of the greater rebuild of the Bank of Canada’s head office, all of which is expected to be completed next year, in time for the 150th anniversary of Confederation.
More than two years after closing, the museum has clarified on its website what exactly the exterior part of the complex will look like.
The angled feature will be the entrance “pyramid” of the relaunched museum, according to a March 30 blog post by museum writer Graham Iddon, headlined “What the heck is that thing?”
The portico is intended to have a “green” roof with public seating for events and outdoor lunching, according to the website.
“With the terraced seating on the green roof of the Museum pyramid, the plaza will be a better place than ever to share lunch with colleagues or enjoy the sunshine,” Iddon writes.
The museum also says the new space will be more inviting for visitors and meet the bank’s safety and security needs.
“I love the new entrance,” museum director Ken Ross said via email. “I think it will accomplish all those goals and more.”
The eye-popping entrance is described as a very big deal to those at the museum because the tourist attraction was not previously visible from the street.
Ross says another reason the portico is so important is that it is expected to attract walk-in traffic.
“Our goal is to communicate the work of the Bank of Canada to Canadians,” he said. “It helps if they know we are here. We believe that our new, visible entrance will help with that.”
He added that it is also a practical issue for tour buses, school groups and even families to have a clear and visible entrance that is conveniently is easy to use.
Senior bank staff is overseeing the project, closely monitored by the bank’s independent directors, who are appointed by the federal government.
The museum has been updating the public about its goals and details of the redevelopment on both its website and through public documents since the beginning, says Ross.
“The new Bank of Canada Museum is intended to offer Canadians a window into the work of the central bank,” he said. “Our goal is transparency, so why wouldn’t we be as transparent as possible about the progress of our new museum?”