Nepean's Former City Hall

Our branch of the Ottawa public library is housed in the building that was once the city of Nepean's city hall...

The city of Nepean doesn't exist anymore (to Terry's chagrin: It was debt free!) In 2001, Nepean, as well as a number of other cities clustered around Ottawa, were forced -  by the province of Ontario - to join Ottawa.

The feeling at the time was that bigger is better, from an administrative standpoint. Toronto - and Montreal, in Quebec - had similar amalgamations forced on them.

So now, our former city hall (built without a mortgage) houses city offices, an art gallery, a library, a bookstore, two theatres - and more!

Outdoors, in winter, there's a large skating rink that people can use for free. In summer it's a large outdoor fountain.

Near the entrance to the building,is a large bell, surrounded by snow. when I took this picture.

For us who remember, the bell is the symbol of the city that was...

It's a reminder - to those of us who lived here at that time - of those good old debt-free Nepean days!