I watched a couple emerge from Old City Hall yesterday, confetti trailing behind them like stars in their wake. The woman’s cream-colored dress caught the afternoon light while her partner’s eyes never left her face. In that moment, surrounded by cheering friends on Queen Street, they weren’t just married – they were part of Toronto’s living history.
After a four-year pandemic-induced hiatus, wedding ceremonies have returned to Old City Hall, bringing life back to one of the city’s most beloved landmarks in an unexpectedly intimate way.
“I’ve waited 20 years to get married here,” says Marisa Chen, 43, who booked her ceremony the day reservations reopened. “My parents got married at Old City Hall in 1978. There’s something about those stone walls that feels like permanence.”
The renaissance of wedding services at this historic site comes as Toronto couples increasingly seek meaningful, place-based ceremonies that connect their love stories to the city’s narrative. Since bookings resumed in March, the city clerk’s office reports that weekend slots are already fully booked through October.
Built between 1889 and 1899, Old City Hall stands as one of Toronto’s finest examples of Romanesque Revival architecture. The building served as Toronto’s municipal headquarters until 1965 before becoming a courthouse. Its wedding chambers, with soaring ceilings and ornate wooden details, offer couples a taste of Edwardian grandeur without the price tag of a heritage venue rental.
Wedding coordinator Samantha Wright, who manages the city’s civil ceremony program, has witnessed firsthand how the return of weddings has breathed new energy into the building.
“These ceremonies connect people to civic life in a deeply personal way,” Wright explains. “During COVID, we lost that physical connection to our shared spaces. Now people come here and touch the stone, walk the same hallways as generations before them. It becomes part of their story.”
Civil ceremonies at Old City Hall cost $307.25, including harmonized sales tax – significantly less than private venue rentals that can easily exceed $5,000 in downtown Toronto. The accessibility has made it popular with couples from diverse backgrounds.
For Raj Mehta and David Goldman, who married at Old City Hall last weekend, the venue represented Toronto’s inclusive history. “As a same-sex, intercultural couple, we wanted somewhere that represented the city’s values,” says Mehta. “Plus, you can’t beat that grand staircase for photos.”
The wedding program aligns with broader efforts to make Toronto’s heritage buildings more accessible to the public. Heritage Toronto has documented how civic engagement with historic structures helps ensure their preservation for future generations. When buildings become meaningful through personal milestones, communities are more likely to advocate for their protection.
According to data from the City of Toronto, approximately 7,000 civil marriages were performed annually before the pandemic. While ceremonies continued virtually and at Toronto City Hall during COVID restrictions, the reopening of Old City Hall’s wedding chambers marks a symbolic return to tradition.
The ceremonies themselves are brief – typically lasting 15 minutes – but many couples incorporate the surrounding area into their celebration, booking photography sessions in nearby Nathan Phillips Square or hosting receptions at restaurants in the vicinity.
Urban planner Jacqueline Torres, who studies how public spaces contribute to civic identity, notes that wedding ceremonies in historic buildings create an important continuity between past and present.
“When we allow landmark buildings to host life’s milestones, we’re saying these spaces belong to everyone,” Torres says. “Old City Hall isn’t just a postcard image or a relic – it’s still actively participating in people’s lives.“
As I watched three different couples emerge from Old City Hall’s heavy wooden doors last Saturday afternoon, tourists and passersby spontaneously applauded each time. In a city often criticized for its coldness, these moments revealed a softer side of Toronto – one that still pauses to celebrate love among strangers.
The wedding program is part of a larger effort to diversify how Torontonians interact with heritage buildings. While Old City Hall’s long-term future remains under discussion – with proposals for a city museum among the possibilities – its present role in citizens’ love stories ensures it remains relevant to contemporary urban life.
For couples interested in booking a ceremony, the city clerk’s office recommends applying at least three months in advance through the city’s website. While weekends book quickly, weekday ceremonies often have more availability.
Standing across from Old City Hall as the evening light turned its sandstone facade a warm honey color, I watched another couple pose for photos on the steps. Their photographer directed them to look up at the clock tower, but they couldn’t stop looking at each other instead – a reminder that while buildings may stand for centuries, it’s the human moments within them that truly give them life.
