City Council Gives Final Approval for Central Library Project

On Monday October 6, 2008, Kitchener City Council gave final approval for the Central Library project. The Library Board will now begin work on the design of a renovated and expanded Main Library.

We look forward to sharing with you detailed design plans for the Central Library in the coming year.

Thank you for your support of the library project.

The Record: Build A Library The City Can Be Proud Of

(Reprinted from The Record)

“After years of discussion, even dithering, Kitchener city council has voted to spend almost $36 million to expand and renovate its main library. This decision is welcome.

[...]

The city should make the expanded, renovated library an attractive, inviting space. In the so-called knowledge economy, it's vital to invest in the material, and the tools such as computers, to build that knowledge.

The library is not just a readily available, free source of information; it is a conduit for culture, a key player in the battle against illiteracy, a way for job seekers to hone their skills, for parents to spark a love of reading in their young children, for new immigrants to connect to their adopted home.

[...]

The library is an essential service in a modern society, and its expansion -- long overdue in a structure built to serve a population of about 76,000 -- should not be saddled with a penny-pinching, nickel-and-dime approach.

Money should not be stinted on design. It is not enough to simply take an aging building, tack on a workmanlike addition, and stuff it with as many books and computers as the budget will allow. The addition must be an inviting, comfortable, usable space.

Simply put, build the library the city needs and deserves, within a reasonable budget.”

Read the full article here