The wait to see the inside of Shands' newest building is over.
This weekend the Shands Cancer Hospital at UF is opening its doors to the public before it begins admitting patients on Nov. 1.
The $388 million cancer hospital, at 1515 SW Archer Road, will host an open house from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday.
Guests will be able to take tours of the facility and preview some of its 192 patient rooms. They will also get to see some of the center's departments, such as the stem cell lab and the emergency department, spokesman Jeff Kelly said.
The center was designed with emphasis on bringing the outside in, Kelly said, and the many windows give the building a unique appearance - the hospital is surrounded by 97,000 square feet of glass.
"It's absolutely a sight to see," he said. "It's not the way your mind's eye would picture a hospital."
Visitors can take guided tours of the eight-story, 500,000-square-foot building and take photos with UF mascots Albert and Alberta. Free food and drinks will also be provided.
Construction on the center began in January 2007. Since then, Kelly said, it has been hard work getting the hospital to this point.
"We're most excited about being able to showcase the hospital to the people it'll be serving," he said.
