New Library. New opportunities.

We caught up with Martinborough Librarian Shirley Nightingale to find out her thoughts on the new library space proposed for the Waihinga Centre and what it will mean for the community.

“We can’t wait for the new library – it seems so distant at the moment but we console ourselves that at some point we will be able to spread out a little and have a lovely space to share with our customers”, says Shirley.

“We like the proposal to use big glass windows to allow plenty of natural light which is always great for book readers. We think this, combined with the high ceilings and open plan design, will ensure the new library feels spacious and airy.

I think the new position will attract people and vibrancy to the new building. We like the design of the building and its position right on the edge of the square adjacent to the children’s playground.

One of the things we are really looking forward to is having enough space for Wifi users to stretch out. At the moment people squeeze into every corner when the weather is inclement and the carpet disappears under legs, feet and bags. The new foyer area will be perfect for Wifi users, studying or relaxing with a newspaper, all of which are difficult to accommodate in our current library.

It will also be lovely to get all our books back together again. As some of you may know we have part of our collection offsite, which includes the Martin Collection. We hope to be able to display the Martin Collection (which, by the way, is available to borrow should you enjoy the classics).

We hope there will also be an opportunity to enlarge both the Large Print and Talking Book Collections which I am sure will be gratefully received by many of our existing customers.

Possibly the most exciting thing for us is the opportunity to look outside the box and find some innovative ideas for the children’s area. It will be light and spacious but we don’t want to fill it up with boring old shelves, so with the help of the Menz Shed guys we hope to create some furniture and display to make the new space fun and exciting for the children. Our children are hugely engaged with the library. They are today’s readers and tomorrow’s leaders and we want them to feel like the library is their second home.

We have a lot to offer the community and we really want to create a friendly, welcoming area which can become an integral part of the whole community.”