After two years with a temporary facility, the Glen Eden
community now has a purpose-built library, opened on 5 October.
The position and design of the building will provide a hub for Glen
Eden, along with the newly refurbished Playhouse Theatre and Glen Eden
shopping centre. Bike racks and disability parking ensures easy and
convenient access for everyone. Local bus and train routes are all
within walking distance, making a range of transport options available.
The new building will also incorporate the Glen Eden Citizen's Advice
Bureau and has an interior space of 900mē. At a cost of $3.7m, it has
taken two and a half years to complete, with construction beginning from
January this year.
Other features include:
A meeting room available for public use that can also be booked
for after library hours use.
A sound system with options of background music, personal music
for adults and audio stories for children.
Televisions in the children's and adult's area linked to SKY,
broadcasting a range of educational and public television
programmes.
The first fully integrated learning centre in Waitakere. A suite
of computers and other technologies accessible to the public and
monitored by the learning co-ordinator. The centre will also provide
self-paced learning and structured tuition for those wishing to
learn new information searching skills. Casual use of the learning
centre is also available.
Glen Eden is just the first of several new libraries planned for
Waitakere City that are being designed as recreational destinations for
families where they can relax in a warm, welcoming environment. Both
learning and informational resources will expand over time, as will
public access to a greater range of information technologies.
Statistics about the new library:
52,000 items in the current collection (includes adult's and
children's books, magazines, videos, DVDs, CDs)
100,000 visits per annum
11,000 registered borrowers (3,500 children & 7,500 adults)
350,000 issues per year
All Waitakere libraries' hours have also been extended. Glen Eden
will open at 9.00am instead of 10.00am and Saturday hours will extend to
10.00am to 4.00pm.
A 6.30am blessing was followed by an official ceremony at 9am with the
library opened to the public at 10am.
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