First look inside library refurb

LOCAL and State government representatives were given a progress tour of the Ballarat Library construction site on Tuesday morning.

Most internal demolition works are complete within the building which is retaining its original bones, but will have an expanded upper level, new purpose-built spaces, improved flow, and a new entrance opposite the Civic Hall.

Library operations manager Jenny Fink outlined how the finished spaces will be utilised.

“We will have an amazing new children’s area, one of the loveliest and biggest in Victoria… with a story dome, and lots of things for children to climb on,” she said.

“One of the first things that has changed is that we’ve removed upper opaque glass panels, because we wanted to be able to see the trees and bring in the light. The natural light is incredible.

“There will be a beautiful, curved bench people can work from every day. We’ve saturated the building with power points and USB plugs.”

In place of the old reception desk will be a space for performances, with big screens so visitors can watch sport and television with noise-cancelling headphones.

Lots of tables and chairs are set to be placed throughout the main space, and there will be more than one community kitchen.

“There will be a coffee cart as well, so people can grab a coffee while they’re here,” Ms Fink said.

“There will be a beautiful, sweeping staircase up to the first floor, as a huge, inviting feature of the library. The first floor is also accessible by an upgraded lift.”

The upper level includes a large youth space which can be used for functions, meeting rooms, a computer lab, and a community maker space with 3D printers, sewing machines and more.

“The spaces need to be flexible, multi-purpose, and used all hours of the day,” Ms Fink said.

“We want to make sure there’s something for everyone… and when they walk past, it looks too interesting not to go in.”

Plenty of toilets, breastfeeding and changing spaces for parents and children are part of the design, alongside a gender-neutral bathroom, and a staff workroom with a 12-sorter radio frequency identification machine.

Worth $7.48 million, the works are being funded with $6.98 million from the City, and $500,000 from the State Government.

City of Ballarat mayor Cr Des Hudson said the “library of the future” is expected to attract 20 per cent more people daily than the old space.

“With the transformation and expansion, we expect over 2000 visitors per day to come in and work from the space, read, borrow books, do research and homework projects, activities, go to functions, grab a coffee, or sit down and just socialise,” he said.

The project is on schedule, led by H Troon, and expected to be completed by the end of 2023, or early 2024.