You paid for it, and now you have an excuse to visit the new $41.7 million headquarters of Minneapolis Public Schools.

The district is throwing an open house on Thursday from 5-7 p.m. to show off the first time its had a scratch-built headquarters in more than a century and a half of operations.

The event features tours, student music and refreshments, plus a five-speaker program at 5:30.

According to the district, more than 1,000 people a day use the building, counting staff, students and the public. The building houses adult basic education classes, the district's enrollment center, and testing areas for students entering kindergarten or those needing help learning English.

The building is formally known as the John B. Davis Education and Service Center, after the late superintendent. Time will tell whether it becomes better-known within the district by its street address of 1250 W. Broadway, as was it's cross town predecessor, 807 NE Broadway.

The building was developed by a partnership of Mortenson Development and Legacy Management and Development Corp. Mortenson and Thor Construciton built the building. It was designed by UrbanWorks Architecture and Urban Design Perspectives.