Name of the Library: Upper Coomera Branch Library
Parent Organisation: City of Gold Coast
Street Address: Corner Reserve and Abraham Roads, Upper Coomera, Queensland, Australia
Postal Address: PO Box 5042 GCMC, Qld 9729, Australia
Telephone : 61 7 5582 9300
Web Address: cityofgoldcoast.com.au/library
Library Email: upclibrary@goldcoast.qld.gov.au
Type of Library: Multipurpose building
Population served: 22,816
Project Type: New Building
Size (square metres): Library 1,004m2; Integrated facility 4000
Date of Completion: 2013
Architect: City of Gold Coast and Daryl Jackson Architecture
Description
The Upper Coomera Branch Library opened 29 April 2013, and is a key feature of Upper Coomera Centre provided by the City of Gold Coast. There are a range of services in the one location provided for convenience and accessibility including:
• Community Centre including multi-purpose hall, five meeting rooms, youth space (including recording studio), arts space, computer lab and Non-Government Office space
• Recreational aquatic facility including recreational pool, with toilets and leisure rooms for a variety of activities, and children’s’ water play
• Councillor Office
• Commercial café with alfresco space
• City of Gold Coast Customer Service Centre
• Anzac Memorial
• Large common foyer space utilised for functions and activities
• Semi commercial kitchen
• Outdoor space that provides a natural amphitheatre for performance and other activities
The Upper Coomera Centre is an innovative design and includes a range of sustainability initiatives such as solar hot water, harvesting of rain water for use in toilets, air conditioning and irrigation, efficient lighting, ‘low e’ glass, water efficient plumbing fixtures, external shading devices and efficiencies in air conditioning. The site has been developed so as to be sympathetic to the existing land form and vegetation.
The central location makes the facility accessible by both public transport routes and major arterial road for vehicles. It is a single level building, for ease of access by all user groups, and includes features such as Braille signage, and access ramps in the pool. The Centre is located within walking distance to four large K-12 schools, and services a demographic that is predominantly young families.
The library features large expanses of glass, providing a sunny, welcoming community space with a range of comfortable seating throughout to encourage the use as a social meeting space. The collections and layout of the library reflect the demographic, including separate areas each for young children, juniors and teens. In addition to public access PC’s customers are able to take advantage of the free wifi and readily accessible power points to utilise their own devices to access the internet and online resources available through the library.
Library programs target all segments of the community, ranging from regular children’s programming through to family history and computing courses for adults. A range of sessions target children in the after school and school holiday periods with many activities aimed at encouraging children to engage with literacy and learning in a fun way. The library also works in partnership with local service providers to provide sessions such as job searching, parenting and financial literacy courses based on community need. In addition the library works with community based organisations such as Pacific Arts and Cultural Heritage Inc. to provide programs such as Waitangi Day celebrations for the local Maori community.
The library is open 53 hours per week, Monday to Saturday. Usage of and visitation to the Centre is growing rapidly and consistently. In the first year of operation the library registered over 10,000 customers and averaged over 800 visitors per day. Of the 11,500 people attending library programs, more than 8000 people were attracted to the 350 storytelling activities. More than 20,000 people utilised the public wifi, in addition to 21,000 hours of public PC usage.
Awards, case studies, further information
2014 Parks and Leisure Queensland Regional Awards of Excellence – LiquidBlu Award for Leisure Facilities (http://www.parksleisure.com.au/regions/qld/regional-awards-of-excellence )
Master Builders Queensland Gold Coast Housing & Construction Awards 2014 – Sporting & Community Service Facilities $5 million – $20 million
More information regarding Upper Coomera Centre http://www.goldcoast.qld.gov.au/community/upper-coomera-centre-6315.html
1001 Libraries to see before you die 