New Central Library | Construction
 

No new information, just figured we ought to have a place dedicated to this development, since it is greatly anticipated by so many here, and will be such a major part of the transformation of the East Village. With Snohetta at the reins, it is sure to be one of the coolest buildings this city has seen!

We should see renders released within the next 6 months, with construction beginning (I think) in October.

I so wish the Science Centre and this Library project could have aligned, and created a grander project on a single site akin to some of Snohetta's most celebrated knowledge hub projects.

So this thought recently came to mind, as the Library is to be design to architecturally accommodate the LRT portal... I'm sure that the connection between the 2 lines will be retained, in case of an emergency under 8th Ave, but I am curious if the design/location was thoroughly thought through with the future separation of the C-Train lines. However It isn't going to be as architecturally significant any more with an unused train line entering and exiting the building. I also really hope there will be a direct underground connection to the library from City Hall station.

new science center is in a terrible location. Rather them have left it where it was and maybe renovated/expanded it. Right next to the new c-train station would have been perfect where it was. Now its in the middle of nowhere and its a huge lifeless warehouse with no character or charm. They dropped the ball on that one big time

Couldn't agree more. Why can't you pick an empty lot near Vic Park Station? Can you imagine if the Beltline had an institution like this? Huge wasted opportunity.

To add insult to injury, they clearly didn't work with the Zoo at all: what's the point of building it tantalizingly close to the LRT station but not do anything to develop even a rudimentary sidewalk or orientate the building so it has better access?

Hopefully they will rip it down in 30 years and come back into the city.

I agree too. It would be nice if one day the zoo parking lots were completely redeveloped - i.e. a multi-story zoo parking and 10 acres of East Village style neighbourhood.

yeah and its not even close to the Ctrain station. The zoo is close to the ctrain station. Telus spark is not. Another huge strike against it. IMO we should have more stations that are enclosed inside cultural hubs. Like the science center been built right off the c-train line and encapsulated the station somehow so you could get from the train to inside the building without stepping outdoors. Something really nice. Not some generic crap warehouse in the middle of nowhere. The have stuff like "adult nights" there. Ok, gonna go there, get a little drunk, take the train home. Nope. Now I go there, have a good time, drink etc. then have to hike 30 minutes to the freakin ctrain station. Way to ruin something that should have been urban and metropolitan.

OMG people! The new science centre IS close to LRT!!! I have high hopes for this area and some redevelopment.

I think pairing the Zoo and science centre is a neat idea; but please, make some better promenade / sidewalk connections to it!

30 minutes? Are you walking on your hands and taking breaks along the way? The station is right there.....

It appears to be a little under 1km. Factor in walking both ways, waiting for trains, perhaps a walk at your destination or a transfer and it quickly becomes an inconvenience.

A bit off topic, but the other day I was riding north on the pathway and was flagged down by a European fellow who was walking north between 8th and 16th ave looking for the next train station to go downtown. I told him he would have to turn around and go to the zoo, as there are no trains further north. He looked flabbergasted, like how can there be no train stations north! I guess coming from Europe he thought he could walk 500m in any direction and find one!

I see having the train fairly close as a convenience. Its not like the science centre is out in panorama hills or something!

Put me down as someone who think Science Centre was a lazy effort. It checks the boxes, but not well. Mediocre design, questionable placement, lost in a sea of parking, and just an overall feeling of a project done on the cheap. These types of civic opportunities don't come around very often, and we missed the chance to do something special.

I have a feeling if it came online 5 years later, we'd have something much nicer. The Science Centre looks like it was build to the expectations of "old" Calgary.

It it takes you any longer than 10 minutes to get to the science centre from the train then there is something wrong with you.

our science center sucks anyway. It's filled with boring junk that's oil and gas related. People want wonder and excitement. Space travel and exploration to far off places. They want to experience something futuristic. This is a science center. Not the junk heap we have now. Calgary dropped the ball big time on something that could have been a defining place for our city.

http://www.bizbash.com/content/editorial/storyimg/big/csc-2013-nfp098c.jpg
http://www.ziogiorgio.com/images/2009/etc_/CalScienceCtr1_SM.jpg

Yeah thats the other thing.. the whole place feels like a junior recruitment drive for the O&G workers of tomorrow! Definitely not a lot of inspiration within those walls..unless you like pulling levers of boxes with some sand in it.

Exhibits can be changed, its the configuration of the building that matters, and once inside, it seems fairly good. The theatre design seems to be messed up, as the chairs dont lean back far enough to enjoy the dome. You end up hitting the concrete behind you and craining your neck, not well done.

Yes, and it was also designed during the height of the recession. Lets not forget that please. It will improve over the years I hope. Is it as good as the old one? I haven't been there yet.

He is drunk.....:cheers:

old one was way better because it had charm. The theatre was nice as well. Was it outdated? Yes. Could it have been renovated and turned into something amazing? Yes. Better location? Yes. Could have been right off the new Sunalta station. I mean I'd rather them have a central epic science center and move the stupid new arena somewhere in the boondocks.

haha :cheers:

At very least they could have replaced part of one of the massive zoo parking lots with the Science Centre rather than placing it north of the zoo property. Hell a single sidewalk would be nice!

Google maps won't even recommend getting off the ctrain at the zoo, it recommends getting off at Bridgeland taking the #9 for 2 stops then walking 1.2km along St. Georges Dr! :koko::haha::sly:

Edit: then again it won't recommend getting of at the zoo station to go to the zoo :runaway:

Things like Science Centres only come around once a generation. If the timing wasn't right to build something good, then maybe we shouldn't have built anything at that time and waited till conditions changed.

Indeed, I'm looking forward to the oil-focused exhibits being replaced in 15 years... with natural gas-focused exhibits. ;)

Science centres are far too often a type of interactive classroom, whose exhibits are designed specifically to facilitate some learning outcome. Any historical perspective on science or artifact is a curiosity that is seen as good to have but unnecessary. Telus Spark is of this kind and it is terrible. But so is the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, which manages to be fairly boring despite having some fairly impressive items in its collection, a huge budget, a long history, and great location. By contrast, the Mütter Museum, which is contained in a much more modest location and on a much more modest budget also in Philadelphia, was one of the most impressive scientific-focused museums I've ever visited.

This issue of course is that "science" is a broad topic, and so museums of natural history, paleontology, archaeology/physical anthropology, geology, and aeronautics, and even zoos and planetariums, are all already museums of science. And so 'science centres' try to cover an entirely too-broad topic, without stepping on the feet of other museums in their region (which are usually the most tangible topics). This leads to museums spread thin, with no clear focus and a needless focus on the current state of technology. Telus Spark also suffers from a terrible governing culture. One of its directors has a professional science background, and that's good, but reading any of their annual reports is depressing. They all make a huge point to mention "Canada's innovation gap", "inspiring new innovators", how many more science degrees China awards than Canada, and the future of Alberta's labour market in the first few pages. I had to attend this Alberta Innovates Technology Futures summit awhile ago, and it was the same thing: every time someone with an MBA tells me about the value of science (which almost invariable includes the phrase "innovation gap"), I die inside just a little bit.

Still haven't been to Telus Spark. I wanted to go see the movie props exhibit but then the flood happened. It's disappointing that it's O&G dominated, but then again not at all surprising. Then again seeing as Telus has the naming rights I wonder if they chipped in more than any oil companies?

Obviously.

Having been there on at least three occasions, including during one of their evening events, I don't think it is oil and gas dominated at all. I'm actually quite perplexed with your post, as you make that observation almost immediately after stating you've not been there.

Interesting new video released today showing the LRT encapsulation strategy for the site during construction - to start in spring 2014. Only a matter of time until they reveal renders for this one :yes:

http://www.calgarymlc.ca/explore-projects/new-central-library/videos

That is so cool. I didn't realize that the footprint of the library is across both sides of the LRT. That is friggin cool. What an amazing opportunity this city has to build something great right now! How exciting! :D

An excellent video!

The extent of the boundaries show very clearly how truly large the site is, and hopefully the very effectively use the span across the road will add to that. I'm really looking forward to seeing how the final design couples with the municipal building, and what modifications are being proposed for the municipal building such as to connect the East and the West. When thinking of the library and municipal building as one larger campus, this is going to be globally noteworthy - if we don't skimp. Nenshi is the right mayor for this to get through at the quality level it requires. If we need to suck up extra taxes for this, I'd be the first to agree!

Is this encapsulation permanent? I was kind of hoping the train tunnel would be worked into the design of the library itself....ie, how cool would it be if it was enclosed in glass, and would run through the interior of the building?

Pretty sure it is .. In the video they note it will factor into the design of the new library and be apart of the foundation

Would love to see this connect with the Municipal Building and its renovations

Hmm too bad if so. It seems like a bit of a missed design opportunity to me to just cover it up. I think the train tracks running through it are the most unique aspect of the site, and I was hoping it would be part of some uniquely whacky design.

It still could be, who knows .. The slabs covering the track are there to protect the LRT line amidst construction .. Perhaps they'll replace those with something more transparent but use the walls as part of the library foundation

Should be pretty interesting to see this one unravel

Yeah I hoped so too. It is kind of weird that they would make it permanent, since the estimated life of the library is 100 years, and the train tracks will be decomissioned (due to the construction of the 8th Avenue Subway) likely within 10 years of the building's opening.

The rendering doesn't look hugely permanent, the roof and wall panels are precast making them relatively easy to remove and replace with something else. The grade beam would be harder to remove and would likely be used as part of the foundation. That said it would be hard to remove them after the building is built around it.

The tracks will always be there as long as we have LRT at grade on 7th to allow for cross over of vehicles.

Steel and wood would be a lot easier to dissemble than precast. This looks like a pretty standard, permanent project.

Much of the zoo parking is former landfill and cannot support structures.

I was at an event with the designers a few months ago, and they mentioned that they first envisioned being able to see the train from within the library, but that the cost was too great.

Agreed. I've been there many times, and I can't think of anything there that has anything to do with oil and gas.

Damn I hope this is the only letdown of the project.

It would look cool but it would be horrendously noisy.

Also, I'm not sure how one would remove large precast slabs when there's a building above and around them.

I hope not. Those tracks can be useful in case of emergency or other contingency situations. It would be even better if there is enough room for a single track on 9th Street to link between the future NW line portal and the 7th Street WLRT tracks.

I'm sure 7th will remain in its current form for another quarter century. Even beyond that, the extended tunnel head will be useful for ventilation or perhaps a spur for hi-rail maintenance vehicle access.

I was merely responding to several forumers who posted before me that they had visited and it was dominated by O&G.

I have a question for everyone...


What is your hope for the design of the new library?

For me, I hope it is a fluid, curvey structure that will look as good in 30 years as the day it is open. Not something boxy or kitchy with a "flavour of the day" look. Something classic, with maybe a few jagged edges mixed in with the curves to give it some sort of dynamic and timeless appeal.

Preferably Stampitecture with condiment colours to help tie the city to its roots.


Its an interesting site, so hopefully something that makes unique use of the property.

The design is about as far from stampitecture with condiment accents as it could be. It's going to be awesome.