Plans underway for new temporary library at Bishopdale

8 August 2013

Christchurch City Council has signed a lease on an empty retail space in Bishopdale Mall, near the closed Bishopdale Community Centre and Library, which it plans to transform into a new temporary library by early October.

The former Westside Travel building, 17C Bishopdale Court, will be converted into a new temporary 175 square metre library. The library will operate until repair and strengthening work is complete on Bishopdale Community Centre and Library next year.

Now that the lease is signed, library staff will begin fitting out the space. It is expected the new temporary library will host a small collection of around 12,000 items. Due to the library’s smaller size, there will be a focus on popular items, including adults’ and children’s fiction and non-fiction, large print, talking books and DVDs. There will also be a small number of computers for public use.

Unit Manager Libraries and Information Carolyn Robertson says the new library is being set up in response to community feedback. The Fendalton-Waimairi Community Board has identified the reinstatement of the library service in Bishopdale as its highest priority and has been instrumental in developing the temporary library concept.

While there has been a mobile library service in place since the closure of the Bishopdale Community Centre and Library, we are aware that residents have really missed the social interaction they experienced at the library. We’re really excited that we’ll soon be engaging with many of our regular customers again for the first time in almost two years, Mrs Robertson says.

We’ll be starting the fit out of the new library and service centre space immediately and will keep residents informed once we have a confirmed opening date.

The Council closed the Bishopdale Community Centre and Library in November 2011 after a Detailed Engineering Evaluation showed its seismic capacity was four per cent of the New Building Standard (NBS) and it had significant structural damage.

Repair and strengthening work on Bishopdale Community Centre and Library, which will cost an estimated $1.25m, is expected to get underway in November this year once engineers have developed detailed repair and strengthening options and consents have been granted. It is expected the library and community centre will re-open in June next year.

Bishopdale Library and Community Centre — Future Christchurch