About South Library

Situated beside the Heathcote River, on the corner of Colombo Street and Hunter Terrace, the South Library provides facilities for residents to study, meet friends and chat over coffee, take time out to sit and read, access information, learn technology skills, hold meetings, conduct Council business and for families to share learning and recreation experiences.

Opening hours

Transport

  • The number 1 bus route stops nearby. See the Metroinfo timetables for more information.
  • Metrocard top-up service is available at the CCC service desk Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm, and from library staff until 6.30pm on weekdays and 3.30pm on Saturday and Sunday.
  • Off street parking and bicycle stands are available.

Services and facilities

Computers and technology

Vily's Café

Vily's Café opened on Monday 9 January 2023. When creating his menu, Vilem kept food waste minimisation principles in mind – everything is made in-house and sourced from local suppliers like Bohemian Bakery, Frank's Café, and Café Berlin.

Monday to Friday: 9am - 4pm
Saturday, Sunday: 10am - 4pm
phone: 03 332 8200

Vily's Cafe, South LibraryVily's Cafe, South Library

Collections

Photographs

ExhibitionNgā Pounamu Māori collection, South LibraryPop up penguin at South LibraryBilingual story starter cards at South Library

See more photos of South Library on Flickr

Te Kete Wānanga o Wai Mōkihi

About our Māori name

New South Library and Service Centre

Connecting South Library back to its history

The new South Library has been gifted a name - Ōmōkihi – connecting the building back to its riverside site.

The name has been given to Christchurch City Council by Ngāi Tūāhuriri and is consistent with the traditional practice of whakahaumanu te papatupu | restoring the customary title to the land beneath the building. Read more: Connecting South Library back to its history Newsline, 13 February 2024


We're engaging with the community as we draw up plans for rebuilding the quake-damaged South Library and customer services building, Te Kete Wānanga o Wai Mōkihi, in Beckenham. Ignite Architects will develop the concept design for a rebuild of the earthquake-damaged building. Ignite will lead a multi-disciplinary team of specialists who'll work together to create a design for a new build on the existing site. The rebuilt facility will provide library, customer services, café and governance spaces and will be a similar size to the existing building. It's important to have the community involved every step of the way. Find out more.

More information about the South Library building

South Christchurch Library Brochure (1.3 Mb PDF)South Christchurch library building was designed by architects Warren and Mahoney, and officially opened on 23 August 2003.

Awards

South Library received a supreme award for architecture at the 2004 NZIA awards. This was one of only five supreme awards given. In addition to the supreme award the building was also a winner in the "community and cultural" and the "colour" sections.