Citizens of Oulu celebrated the opening of the City Hall – almost 17 000 visitors participated in the opening ceremony events
The Oulu City Hall’s opening week was hugely popular as almost 17 000 citizens of Oulu participated in the diverse events organized during the opening week. The City Hall was opened to the public after three years of large-scale renovations. During the opening week, the new facilities were proven to be versatile. The programming included dancing, markets, a club evening and a film show. The new exhibition facilities in the basement saw 3 460 visitors during the week. There were two exhibitions in the facilities: The Museum of North Ostrobothnia’s ‘Seurahuone – kaupunkilaisten talo’ and the Oulu Art Scool’s ‘Kaupunkitarinoita’.
The City Hall, which was opened to the public after three years of renovations, attracted almost 17 000 visitors during the opening week. The busiest day was Saturday, when attendance exceeded 5 000 people. Planning the opening week’s diverse programming began already a year ago, and it included events for all ages. Additionally, the opening week offered twelve couples a unique opportunity to get married in the City Hall’s banquet hall on Sunday.
The City Hall’s opening week proved that its facilities are suitable for diverse events after the renovation, and based on feedback, the City Hall could be opened to the public more diversely.
“We wanted to open the City Hall to the public after the renovation, but there was no pre-made plan for what that means. The opening week’s programme became diverse and we received plenty of valuable experience of what kind of events the City Hall is suitable for”, the City Hall opening’s Event Producer Eeva Ojala states.
A team of a hundred people representing the city’s different units, associations and culture partners participated in planning the City Hall’s opening week.
“We started planning the opening week one year ago. The final programme execution was handled by about 200 people according to my estimation”, Ojala says.
Practice for the European Capital of Culture year
For the City Hall’s superintendents, the opening week offered new challenges as large public interest during Open House surprised them. The experiences of the City Hall’s opening week offer valuable lessons for future events, such as the European Capital of Culture year.
“Due to fire and safety regulations, we could not let more than 500 visitors enter the City Hall, and we do not run into situations where people queue up outside the City Hall often. The week has been a learning experience for the coming European Capital of Culture year when the Rauhankone artwork will be located at the City Hall which will surely draw public interest. Maybe there will be more attractive events here in the future”, Superintendent Ville Räisänen estimates.
You can explore the City Hall’s facilities in the future as well since the City Hall’s restaurant is open during lunchtime for citizens as well. Additionally, you can explore the new exhibition facilities in the basement where the ‘Seurahuone – kaupunkilaisten talo’ exhibition will be open until August 2025. The City Hall’s exhibition facilities are fully accessible from the Hallituskatu entrance. The opening times of the exhibition facilities will be settled during October.