July 24, 2004 -- Cold War Bunker Visit

Denely, Randall. The Ottawa Citizen. “Cold War Bunker Visit Pricey, But Good Value.” July 24, 2004. E. 1.  

In a local museum world where admission charges range from non-existent to nominal, the Diefenbunker stands out. The former Cold War government command centre in Carp charges a $14 adult admission. By comparison, the Museum of Civilization charges $10.  

Driving out to Carp, I was looking for the answers to two questions. First, can the Diefenbunker possibly be worth paying $14 to see? And if it is, why does the city subsidize a museum that has so little to do with the city's story?  

The museum doesn't make a big visual impression when you arrive, but I suppose that's the nature of bunkers. You see a fence, a guardhouse and a large metal tunnel, connected by a parking lot. The place looks a bit rundown.  

Inside, though, the non-profit group that runs the museum has done a remarkable job of recreating the bunker as it would have been when it was ready to house our government in the event of a nuclear attack. It's quite an accomplishment considering that the government emptied the interior of the bunker before disposing of it. Only a determined group of people prevented them from closing the entrance with concrete and sealing off this piece of history forever.  

Donations and scrounging have produced everything from computers, to teletypes to uniforms. Quarters are spartan underground. Even the prime minister's suite is less than you'd expect now from a budget motel. The four-storey bunker doesn't look quite as if it's ready for action, but pretty close. All this has been accomplished since the museum opened in 1998.  

For people who grew up in the 1950s and 1960s, the bunker brings back a lot of memories. Remember when people thought a home fallout shelter was a good idea? You can see a re-creation of one here.  

At $14, I'd say the bunker is pricey, but still good value.  

The Diefenbunker illustrates an important point: People are willing to pay top dollar if an attraction is worth it. Attendance has climbed from 5,000 in 1998 to 21,000 last year. That's about a quarter of all attendance for the 10 museums the city runs or supports. So far this year, 13,000 people have taken the museum's guided tour. The bunker is so large and confusingly laid out, it isn't safe to let people roam around unescorted.  

The bunker brings in $150,000 in admissions receipts, curator Shawna Moffat says, the bulk of its $240,000 budget. The city contributes about $53,000. Had the city followed through with its plan to cut off the museum's money, the robust admissions would have kept it going for a while, Moffat says, "but it would have shortened our lifespan."  

The museum relies on VFRs, visiting friends and relatives, for its business, she says. Just over half of its visitors are from Eastern Ontario, but it is obviously having success at drawing tourists, despite its relatively remote location and lack of public transit access.  

That admissions figure "crushed every museum in the province last year in terms of take at the gate," says Terry Quinlan, an instructor in the museum studies program at Algonquin College.  

The Diefenbunker is the only city museum that is open year-round, although it has a budget that's less than city-owned seasonal operations. Year-round opening is partly a matter of necessity. The bunker isn't heated and relies on electrical lights and body heat to keep the temperature up.  

It's an expensive site to run. Electricity alone costs $3,000 a month, Moffat says. Building system are starting to fail and "we are experiencing a lot of pricey repairs," she says. Water at the site is not safe to drink, which prevents the museum from running a kitchen to sell visitors food, although the original cafeteria would be an ideal site. The museum is also limited by fire marshal regulations that say the building can only hold 60 people at once. The concern is that there is only one exit.  

Although the Diefenbunker appears to to be well-run and worth the price of admission, it's not immediately clear why the city helps pay for it. It tells a federal story, although Moffat argues that "government history is intrinsic to who we are." True, but when so much of the city's story is untold, it's difficult to make a priority of telling the federal story.  

If the city is to keep funding the bunker, it should be as part of a business plan for marketing local museums. The Diefenbunker is obviously a saleable product, produced at minimal cost. If the city were to link its museums with shuttle buses, the Diefenbunker would be a natural pairing with nearby Pinhey's Point. More on that later in this series.  

Contact Randall Denley at 596-3756 or by e-mail, rdenley@thecitizen.canwest.com