Friday, February 7, 2025

Spiralling costs prompt new chapter for Broken Hill library

Broken Hill City Council this week unveiled a fresh design for the city’s new $14.5 million library as the project progresses in the face of spiralling costs.

Council says project costs have increased by around 80% over the last 12 months due to inflation, forcing a complete redesign of the project in order for it to continue.

The new design incorporates all the features requested by the community in a new facility, such as improved areas for kids and families, and a dedicated ‘keeping place’ to help preserve local Aboriginal history.

The project has also been split into two stages, with the library portion to be completed first, and the archives to follow as funding becomes available.

The Council will now prepare Development Application (DA) documentation for planning assessment and begin work on a detailed design, with the aim of starting contraction in late 2023, it said in a statement this week.

The project will also see the ground floor of Council’s Blende Street Administrative Centre converted into a temporary library to allow the library service to continue during construction of the new facility at the rear of the Town Hall facade.

Work on the temporary library is expected to commence in late July.

The new library and archives project is being funded by the NSW Government, Federal Government, and Council.

See a 3D render of the library design here.

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