Projects - Te Matapihi | Central Library

Artist's impression of the new library building viewed from Victoria Street.

Te Matapihi ki te Ao Nui Central Library is where you can open windows to the wide world. It will be a place where people can learn, cultures and communities can connect with each other, and everyone can enjoy access to open public spaces.

About Te Matapihi

Wellingtonians love their libraries, and Te Matapihi Central Library has a special place in their hearts. That’s why the Council confirmed in 2020 that the building would be remediated to the highest standard (base isolation), following its closure to the public in March 2019.

In 2020, work began on the future for Te Matapihi. This process involved consultation with the Wellington public, including mana whenua, and many other key stakeholders and partners. The feedback was clear: Wellingtonians wanted Te Matapihi to be first and foremost a safe, resilient, and future-proofed library, a centre for public knowledge, and a multipurpose, multi-use resource for the community.

As a result of that community engagement, in April 2021 Council adopted the following guiding principles:

Engage fully with mana whenua
Design for the visitor
Harness the power of partnership
Make it a modern library, fit for purpose, make it Wellington.

When Te Matapihi ki te Ao Nui reopens you will find:

the Central Library Services
the City Archive
the Council customer services
on site Capital E services for young people to grow their creativity
a large ground floor café
active spaces for meeting and making connections
quiet spaces to study and read.

The target is for the building to have a 5-Green-Star rating, meaning it has a high standard in terms of environmentally sustainable design.

Te Matapihi will be integral part of the Capital and the life of Wellington. Everyone who comes to Te Matapihi can expect to find inspiring experiences, books, spaces and more, all opening a window to knowledge and connection.

Project milestones

March 2019 – Library closure
July 2020 – Community consultation on the future of the library
October 2020 – Council approval to strengthen the building
April 2021 – Design principles agreed
April 2022 – Preliminary design approved
December 2022 – LT McGuiness begins construction
September 2023 – Detail design complete
November 2023 – First base isolators installed, concreting 60% complete, composite flooring system (ComFlor) 95% installed
December 2023 – Base isolators installed
Early 2025 – Building envelope complete (back to having walls and windows)
Mid 2025 – Landscaping
June 2025 onwards – Book collections move back in
September 2025 – Practical completion (this is when the building is handed over to the Council)
February 2026 – Library fit-out
Early 2026 – Opening day.

Updates

Read the latest news and updates and follow the progress of the construction through images and video.

September 2023: Time capsule uncovered ahead of time

September 2023: Significant construction milestone

June 2023: Tower crane install at Te Matapihi

L.T. McGuinness are preparing to install a tower crane onto the Te Matapihi Library site on Victoria Street from 12 June 2023, weather permitting. The crane will be there until March 2025.

The team will begin with the setup of a mobile crane on Victoria Street and will require a weather window of four consecutive days of low wind levels to be able to build the tower crane safely. If weather is not favourable, they will have to postpone the operation until the next available weather window.

Impact on Victoria Street

Victoria Street will be closed to all through traffic from Harris Street to the Mercer Street intersection during the 4-day window. All vehicle access that is required to the carparking building on the western side of Victoria Street between Harris Street and Mercer Street will be escorted by traffic controllers.

Please expect traffic disruption along Victoria Street and surrounding roads due to lane closures during this time. We apologise in advance for any inconvenience this may cause.

Pedestrian access will remain available along the western side of Victoria Street, however, please be aware of the isolated work zone that will be occurring on Victoria Street.

Installation schedule

The crane installation operation involves:

Day 1: Traffic management setup and road closure of Victoria Street, from Harris Street to Mercer Street. Setup of mobile crane which will build the tower crane. Truck deliveries.
Day 2: Building tower crane and truck deliveries.
Day 3: Building tower crane and truck deliveries.
Day 4: Demobilisation of mobile crane and removal of road closure.

Hours of operation

Work on site will generally be between 7.30am and 6pm, Monday to Saturday. However, there may be some works outside of these times, dependant of progress.

Purpose of the crane

The crane will provide the ability to lift materials from the loading zone on Harris Street and Victoria Street into the building. It will play an important part in the construction of the new facades and the Civic Room.

December 2022: Funding approved for design and getting ready for reconstruction

Te Matapihi getting ready for reconstruction

LT McGuinness is on-site at Te Matapihi - Central Library and in full swing with enabling and strengthening works making the building ready for reconstruction.
News - Te Matapihi - Central Library getting ready for reconstruction - 20.12.22

Te Matapihi funding approved for design

On 15 December 2022, the Council resolved to increase the Te Matapihi ki te Ao Nui budget by $12 million for design, delivering integrated Central Library, City Archives, Customer Service Centre and Experience Wellington’s Capital E services, and celebrating Pōneke’s unique cultural identity.

This will meet new legislative requirements and address the implementation of Council committee resolutions from 2021.

In 2020, Council decided on the required seismic strengthening of the original Te Matapihi building and reconstruction. The initial budget approved for this work was $178.7 million. In April 2021, the Council approved a further $8.5 million to extend levels 3 and 4 and $1.9 million to progress sustainability initiatives to achieve a 5 Green Star design rating. These three amounts are the baseline budget for construction works.

In April 2021, the Council established new guiding design principles directing the future of the Te Matapihi project. This design defined a future visitor experience of Pōneke’s unique cultural identity and integrated services, including City Archives, Customer Service Centre and Experience Wellington’s Capital E.

The additional funding provision of $12 million for the Te Matapihi project addresses these required elements and legislative requirements supporting new and exciting public services at the heart of our inner-city centre for everyone to enjoy.

The extra funding includes:

$6.5 million for cultural identity, including 13 cultural and art elements and entranceway design.
$500, 000 for a legislation change MBIE has introduced that Council must adhere to and the costs associated.
$5 million for integrated services and spaces, providing an enhanced visitor experience all in one place.

Watch a quick video of the installation of the tower crane at Te Mataphi:

The design team

The design team includes specialists from Athfield Architects who designed the original building in 1991, Aurecon, Tihei, Wraight & Associates, and Māpuna.

Construction company LT McGuinness has also provided vital input into the design process, by engaging with the team through a formal Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) agreement.

A project this large also requires the skills and expertise of RCP Project Management and RLB Quantity Surveyor, tracking and guiding the budget.

About the closure

After the Kaikoura earthquake, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), in partnership with the engineering fraternity, commissioned guidelines on how to assess pre-cast concrete flooring systems. These guidelines were published in November 2018.

The Council commissioned an engineering assessment of the Central Library building using these MBIE guidelines as the library has this flooring system.

The assessment revealed that the building has structural vulnerabilities that mean it may not perform well in the event of a significant earthquake.

The engineers' report

Engineering Assessment Memo (1.9MB PDF)
Engineering Assessment (317KB PDF)

Contact us

While Te Matapihi is being restored you can visit our two libraries in the city centre – Arapaki Manners Library and Te Awe in Brandon Street– or any our branches around the city.

For locations, opening hours and services visit the Wellington City Libraries website

If you have any questions contact us.
Email: enquiries@wcl.govt.nz
Phone: 04 801 4040

Te Matapihi ki te Ao Nui
Te Matapihi | Central Library