DOORS OPEN HAMILTON
■ Varying times Saturday and Sunday with 31 in-person sites across the city as well as others virtually.
■ See: doorsopenontario.on.ca/pages/events/hamilton
Balfour Estate
■ 1 Balfour Drive
■ Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
■ See Spectator video tour at thespec.com
Other Doors Open highlights Beach Canal Lighthouse
■ The Beach Canal Lighthouse is a 17-metre stone tower with an iron lantern, completed in 1858. The Hamilton-Oshawa Port Authority recently announced plans to move it a short distance away, complete restoration work, and reopen the structure as a nautical themed museum.
■ 1155 Beach Blvd.
■ Saturday and Sunday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Coppley Building
■ The 1856 former Coppley Building, touted as the finest surviving pre-Confederation commercial building in Hamilton, was recently acquired by TAS, a Torontobased developer. The company, in partnership with the Hamilton Community Foundation, plans to bring the former textile factory back into productive use as a community hub with the HCF as an anchor tenant.
■ York and MacNab
■ Saturday only: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Otterburn
In October, I wrote about Otterburn — touted as the second-oldest inhabited home in Ontario — after I had the opportunity to tour the wonderful house, the grounds and the ruins of grist mills on the back of the property. The house and mill were built in 1789 by United Empire Loyalist John Aikman.
■ 919 Mineral Springs Road
■ The home’s current owner, Patrick Bermingham, will host two tours, Saturday and Sunday at 10 a.m. (20-person maximum; register via email at bobmaton@hotmail.com)
Auchmar
The Auchmar Manor House occasionally opens its doors to the public and is always a treat to see. Built between 1852 and 1854 by businessperson and politician Isaac Buchanan, the Gothic revival manor house is another heritage building the city has been struggling to put into productive reuse.
■ Fennell and West 5th
■ Saturday only 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.