In Which We Discuss Birmingham's New Library

When I say "my library", I generally refer to Birmingham Central Library, located above Paradise Forum in Birmingham City Centre. It's fairly large, with the children's library on the first floor, fiction and a few other sections on the second floor, and reference material (which can't be borrowed) on the fourth, fifth, and possibly, sixth floors (I mostly stick to fiction, and things I am allowed to take home - although I do wander upstairs, it's not often enough to remember exactly how many floors there are).



Although each individual section isn't as large as it could be, Basall Heath Library (which used to be my local) could easily fit in just half of the second floor - it's slightly smaller than Central's fiction section, poor little thing.

Central Library towers over Centenary Square (well, it's not really thin enough to tower, but it is nice and big), where the REP theatre is located. That's the new REP - the Old Rep is in Station Street, next to the Electric Cinema (the eldest cinema in the UK, incidentally). It's an old building. I'd noticed that the escalators kept breaking down, but I admit to being a little blind to the bits of concrete falling off the outside, and the net over it to keep it all in place. I'll try looking at the outside next time, but it's hard for a book junkie to concentrate on anything, that close to a library.

Anyway, plans are now afoot for a new library to be built, combining the REP theatre with Central Library. It will be bigger, and better, and have more space for books and resources (including kinds other than books,which weren't really considered when the library was originally built).

Birmingham Central Library - the entrance is on the right, but the bulk of the library is to the left.

The new combined Library/REP will cost £193 million, and building is scheduled to start in 2010, with completion planned for mid 2013. It will be located between Baskerville House and the REP, an area which is currently used as a carpark. The building of the library will increase employment (something that Birmingham needs, admittedly - handily, the location of both new and old libraries is very close to the jobcentre).

An article on Birmingham City Council's site mentions the following;

The development will include a new medium-sized auditorium, meeting and conference rooms, plus cafe and restaurant facilties that will be for the shared use of the library and the theatre. It will also include improvements to The REP's frontage and front-of-house facilties.The development will boost and consolidate the continued regeneration of the city centre's Westside and the improvement of Centenary Square.

What fun. The new library will also be more efficient in energy usage than the old one, and, hopefully, won't fall apart.

For more information, take a look here, here, and here.