Waterloo City Council released the final design concept, and approved $10 million in funding for construction of a new east-end library facility on December 16.

The East Side Branch Library will be an addition to the existing RIM Park Manulife Sportsplex and Healthy Living Centre. Designed by a joint-venture team from John MacDonald Architect and Ward 99 Architects, the library will include a Trombe wall for passive solar heating and an open, flexible space that will encourage community programming activities. The design also features a forest school, an enclosed, natural outdoor space that can be used year-round for dynamic programming and educational activities for all ages.

“We are excited to move into the next phase of bringing the East Side Branch Library to life,” says Laurie Clarke, Waterloo Public Library’s CEO. “As always, working with City staff has been a great experience and the entire project team continues to work diligently and enthusiastically on such an important initiative for our community.”

The single-storey addition will span approximately 15,500 square feet, including 13,000 square feet of new floor area and 2,500 square feet of renovations to the Sportsplex building. Modifications to the existing site adjacent to the addition are also involved. This will generally include alterations of the parking lot, site services, exterior lighting, pedestrian routes and landscaping.

Waterloo Public Library currently has three locations, including the Main Library in Uptown Waterloo, the John M. Harper Branch in Laurelwood and the McCormick Branch in the Sunnydale neighbourhood.

“This is an important moment in Waterloo, for all of us at the WPL and for the citizens we serve,” said Karen Scian, Chair of the WPL Board of Trustees. “We have successfully secured sustainable funding for our current branches and have paved a clear and responsible path forward, to a sustainably-funded four-branch library system, including a new branch on the east side of the city.”

The city will issue a request for tender in January. Groundbreaking is expected to commence in the spring, and the facility is scheduled to open in July 2021.