Durban is getting a new R568-million state-of-art central library as part of a major facelift of the province’s libraries.
The new glass-fronted building will be built on the Centrum site near the Workshop shopping centre, with construction scheduled to begin some time next year.
This was announced by the MEC for Arts and Culture in the province, Ntombikayise Sibhidla- Saphetha, in the legislature in Pietermaritzburg yesterday.
Sibhidla-Saphetha noted that library services in the city of Durban were scattered currently between five separate buildings due to the lack of a single space to house a central library collection.
She said the new library would be able to accommodate all existing service points and would also provide for a larger book collection, additional meeting and study rooms, a 250-seat cultural and performance space and areas for computers and other emerging technologies.
“It will blend the best of traditional services and new innovative spaces, making it a vital centre for learning and culture in the heart of the province,” said Sibhidla-Saphetha.
She said her department would provide R440m of the estimated total cost of R568m, with further contributions from the eThekwini municipality and the Carnegie Corporation in New York.
The announcement has been welcomed by eThekwini Parks, Recreation, Cemeteries and Culture Department head Thembinkosi Ngcobo who noted that the city had been trying for 16 years to secure funding for the project.
“Durban is one of the only big cities that does not have a main central library, but now there is a commitment for a budget, and it is enough to allow us to build a state-of-the-art building.
“All collections and references will move (to the new site), including our music and children’s collection. This will bring a huge relief to us.”
With the size of the new establishment, Ngcobo said he believed it would attract large numbers of people, creating a vibrant library culture in Durban.
“The building will not only be for books, but will become an information centre for all.”
He added that the staff at the existing libraries would be consolidated and the city would release or rent out the older properties.
Staffing
Meanwhile, Sibhidla-Saphetha also announced that a total of R116.5m would be given to all municipalities in this financial year and a further R240.8m in the 2013/14 financial year for the staffing costs of 220 libraries in the province.
The MEC also announced that her department would step up the renaming of geographical places in the province, achieving a total of 130 name changes in the 2014/15 financial year.
She said a report released by National Planning Commission highlighted the enormous disparities that still existed in the country.
“As the rainbow nation, we have a past so skewed and filled with anomalies such as the distortions in the names of places.
“The provincial and district geographical names committees will ensure that these anomalies are addressed,” said Sabhidla-Saphetha.
