Bigger, renovated military museum reopens to public Sunday

After nine years of planning and $26.4 million, The Military Museums in Calgary will officially unveil a completed expansion and renovation this weekend.

"There's lots to see and do here, and it's not something that you can cover in one day anymore," said CEO Brian Brake on Friday.

The public grand opening of the revamped museum on Sunday willfeature historical re-enactments, marching drills, relay races and tours. Admission will be free that day.

Formerly known as the Museum of the Regiments, the facility is the only one in Canada other than Ottawa's Canadian War Museum to showcase displays about the Canadian army, navy and air force.

The expansion saw the facility double in size from 52,000 to 107,000 square feet. Along with new space for art and artifacts, there's now a virtual classroom and computerized maze for students.

Art curator Colleen Sharpe is putting the finishing touches on a major exhibition of war art by members of the Group of Seven in the brand new Founders Gallery. The pieces are on loan from the Canadian War Museum.

"The war museum and Ottawa generally, they're really excited about getting art out west and out of Ottawa so that more Canadians can see it," Sharpe explainedduring a preview visit for CBC News.

"So, they were really helpful in basically letting us have our pick of what we wanted to borrow from their collection."

Brake said a visit to the museum is an important learning experience.

"There's been a real price paid by a lot of people to get what we've got today, and we should be proud of what we've got today," said Brake. "[People] need to come here and learn a little bit about the past and contributions that people have made to create the society that we have today."

The museum is closed on Saturday for a private opening ceremonyand tea partythat will be attended by the Countess of Wessex, who is in Calgary with her husband, Prince Edward. The ceremony coincides with the 65th anniversary of D-Day, which will also be marked with a formal ball at the Hyatt Regency hotel in downtown Calgary.

The public grand openingwill be on Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.