Fly-through look at new West Lakes library on old Football Park site
The first look inside a $20 million community hub planned for the Football Park redevelopment has been released, including an $8.2 million state-of-the-art library. SEE THE PLANS
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Artist-in-residences, pop-up shops, a digital laboratory and nutrition classes are all on the cards for the new world-class library being built at the old Football Park site at West Lakes.
A look inside the project – part of a $20 million community hub featuring a cafe, medical centre and allied health services – has been released ahead of its planned completion next year.
While the former library at West Lakes broke new ground in its time, introducing drive-through returns to SA, its state-of-the-art $8.2 million replacement is set to be much more innovative.
The space has been designed by Brown Falconer principal of interior architecture Yan-Yan Ho, who said it the project would not be a traditional library and community facility.
“It’s about giving the community the opportunity to come into the facility and experience something new,” Ms Ho told Monday night’s Charles Sturt Council meeting.
“We know with council assets, that we don’t have a lot of money to spend over and over again, so we’re trying to make the spaces really smart, so it has lots of different elements that can morph over time,” she said.
Ms Ho described the different areas of the library as “mini-cities” catering to different needs.
Included in the design is a studio – a place that could potentially host an artist-in-residence or a pop-up shop.
Another area is the workshop, a multipurpose space that will be used for seminars, meetings and general community activity, including fixtures for showcasing art pieces and hanging paintings.
An open kitchen is also included in the design for cooking demonstrations, celebrity chef author events, food and nutrition related programs.
A digital lab has also been included to facilitate digital literacy programs, seminars, workshops and creative design.
The West Lakes Library and Community Centre will occupy the ground floor within a three-storey building on Charles Street.
All up, the three-storey building has a total costing of about $20m.
It will incorporate council’s library and community centre facilities and a privately operated cafe on the ground floor, with commercial medical and allied health suites occupying the upper two floors.
Construction of the library is set to take 12 months, with work to begin shortly.
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