}} The '''Calgary Central Library''', also known as the '''Calgary New Central Library''' ('''NCL'''), is an under construction [[public library]] in [[Calgary]], Alberta that will be part of the [[Calgary Public Library]] system when completed in November 2018. The four-storey structure is being built in the [[Downtown East Village, Calgary|Downtown East Village]] neighborhood and will include {{convert|240,000|sqft|sqm}} of space. The $245 million library will replace the existing central branch in [[Downtown Calgary]], built in 1963 and expanded in 1974.
A combined bid from American-[[Norway|Norwegian]] architecture firm [[Snøhetta (company)|
Snøhetta]] and Canadian firm DIALOG won a [[Architectural design competition|design competition]] held for the project in 2013. Their design features an oval-like form and an interior with a large central [[atrium (architecture)|atrium]] with a [[skylight]]. The building is elevated one floor above street level to accommodate a [[light rail]] trackway below as well as a public [[plaza]].
Planning for a new library began in 2004 and was finalized in 2011. Construction began in 2013 with the [[wikt:encapsulation|encapsulation]] of an existing [[CTrain]] light rail tunnel portal; above-ground construction of the library itself began in September 2015.
==Location==
The Central Library will be located along 3rd Street SE between 7th and 9th avenues in the [[Downtown East Village, Calgary|Downtown East Village]] neighborhood, adjacent to the [[Calgary Municipal Building]].<ref name="Herald-Design14">{{cite news |last=Markusoff | first=Jason |date=3 September 2014 |title=Design for 'stunning' new central library unveiled | url=http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/calgary/Design+stunning+central+library+unveiled/101 75733/story.html |newspaper=[[Calgary Herald]] |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref> The [[CTrain]] [[City Hall (CTrain)|City Hall]] station is located to the west of the library's northwest corner.<ref name="CBC-Plus15">{{cite news |date=15 July 2014 |title=New downtown library will not get Plus 15 link to City Hall |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/new- downtown-library-will-not-get-plus-15-link-to-city-hall-1.2708018 |publisher=CBC News | accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
==Planning and funding==
Planning for a new central library branch in Downtown Calgary, to replace an older building used since 1964, began in 2004. The city of Calgary, working with the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation, proposed a site adjacent to the city hall in the [[Downtown East Village, Calgary| Downtown East Village]] neighborhood. The Calgary City Council approved the project in 2011, providing $40 million for its construction.<ref>{{cite news |date=26 July 2011 |title=New library to be built in East Village |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/new-library-to-be-built- in-east-village-1.1014954 |publisher=[[CBC News]] |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref> Rejected sites included the current library in Downtown, the former headquarters of the [[Calgary Board of Education]], the [[Olympic Plaza (Calgary)|Olympic Plaza]], and the former [[Telus Spark|Telus World of Science]] centre in the [[Downtown West End, Calgary|Downtown West End]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Markusoff |first=Jason |date=20 July 2011 |title=Where the library isn't going |url=http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/where-the-library-isnt-going | newspaper=Calgary Herald |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
Of the $245 million budgeted for the library project, $175 million was contributed by the city government and $70 million came from the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation, a city-owned [[real estate developer]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Project Team and Partners | url=http://yycnewcentrallibrary.com/team |work=YYC New Central Library |publisher=Calgary Municipal Land Corporation |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref> The largest private donation for the project, via the Calgary Public Library Foundation, was a $1.5 million contribution from [[Nexen]], a Calgary-based [[oil]] company and subsidiary to the Chinese state-run [[CNOOC]], for the [[naming right]]s to a high-tech learning centre.<ref>{{cite news |last=Markusoff |first=Jason |date=12 September 2013 |title=Chinese state-owned CNOOC makes largest-ever donation to Calgary Public Library | url=http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Chinese+state+owned+CNOOC+makes+largest+ever+d onation+Calgary+Public+Library/8909832/story.html |newspaper=Calgary Herald | accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
==Design and amenities==
[[File:Calgary Central Library East Render.jpg|thumb|left|Render of the Calgary Central Library
from the east]]
The library's design was unveiled to the public in September 2014 by architects [[Snøhetta (company)|Snøhetta]] and DIALOG, who won a design competition in 2013. The entire building is oval-shaped and is elevated one floor above street level to cover a [[CTrain]] [[light rail]] tunnel and an open [[plaza]], included with the intention of connecting [[Downtown East Village, Calgary|Downtown East Village]] to downtown. The entrance is framed by wood-clad arches inspired by the shape of arched clouds made by [[Chinook wind]]s in Alberta. Landscaping around the library and adjoining plaza consists of terracing inspired by the foothills of the [[Canadian Rockies]].<ref name="Snohetta">{{cite web |title=Calgary's New Central Library and Library Plaza |url=http://snohetta.com/projects/194-calgary39s-new-central-library-and-library- plaza |publisher=[[Snøhetta (company)|Snøhetta]] |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
The exterior is wrapped in a textured [[façade]], with translucent [[fritted glass]] panels used to shield private study areas and clear glass to make public areas viewable from the outside.<ref name="Snohetta"/><ref>{{cite news |last=Rosenfield |first=Karissa |date=24 September 2014 | title=Snøhetta Unveils Final Design for Calgary's New Central Library | url=http://www.archdaily.com/551086/snohetta-unveils-final-design-for-calgary-s-new-central- library |work=[[ArchDaily]] |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
The {{convert|240,000|sqft|sqm|adj=mid}} interior centres around a four-storey central
[[atrium (architecture)|atrium]] topped by a [[skylight]]. The lower floors contain the library's meeting spaces and activity centres, while the upper floors feature book stacks with space for 600,000 titles and a reading room. At street level, one floor below the main lobby, is a 340-seat theatre, [[conference room]]s, and small café.<ref name="Herald-Design14"/><ref>{{cite web | title=Experience the NCL |url=http://yycnewcentrallibrary.com/experience |work=YYC New Central Library |publisher=Calgary Municipal Land Corporation |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
The entire library features several [[environmentally friendly]] features, such as triple-pane windows to save energy on climate control and finishings made of low [[volatile organic compound]] materials.<ref>{{cite web |year=2015 |title=New Central Library Newsletter: Fall 2015 | url=http://static1.squarespace.com/static/56a113365dc6de6ca8f05310/t/56bb7bc01bbee0cbd5 2dc463/1455127488957/NCL_Newsletter_Fall_2015.pdf |format=PDF |publisher=Calgary Municipal Land Corporation |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
One notable absence from the new library is a connection to the [[+15]] [[skybridge]] system that spans the [[central business district]] of Calgary, the nearest location of which is inside the [[Calgary Municipal Building]].<ref name="Herald-Design14"/> A connection was considered, but ultimately rejected because of conflicts with the city hall's hours of operation as well as low predicted traffic.<ref name="CBC-Plus15"/>
Calgary Mayor [[Naheed Nenshi]] described the library as a "new icon for the city" at the public unveiling of the final design in 2014.<ref>{{cite news |date=23 September 2014 |title=Calgary's new central library to be an icon for the city, says Nenshi | url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/calgary-s-new-central-library-to-be-an-icon-for- the-city-says-nenshi-1.2775872 |publisher=CBC News |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
[[Public art]] for the library will be selected in 2017, with [[Percent for Art|one percent]] of the project budget dedicated to public art.<ref>{{cite web |title=Project | url=http://yycnewcentrallibrary.com/project |work=YYC New Central Library |publisher=Calgary Municipal Land Corporation |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref>
==Construction==
The first stage of construction was the $25 million encapsulation of a {{convert|135|m|ft| adj=mid}} long section of light rail used by the [[CTrain]] Red Line, which emerges from a tunnel on the proposed site.<ref>{{cite news |date=7 May 2014 |title=Calgary LRT line to be enclosed for central library construction |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/calgary-lrt-line-to- be-enclosed-for-central-library-construction-1.2635137 |publisher=CBC News |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref> The light rail encapsulation began in May 2014 and was completed in September 2015, allowing for vertical construction of the library to begin.<ref name="CBC- 2015">{{cite news |date=30 September 2015 |title=Calgary's new central library will start to rise |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/new-central-library-calgary-construction- 1.3251432 |publisher=CBC News |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=New Central Library |url=http://www.calgarymlc.ca/new-central-library/ |publisher=Calgary Municipal Land Corporation |accessdate=30 May 2016}}</ref>
Construction of the library itself is expected to take 750 days and be completed by November 1, 2018.<ref name="CBC-2015"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Progress | url=http://yycnewcentrallibrary.com/progress |work=YYC New Central Library | publisher=Calgary Municipal Land Corporation |accessdate=17 May 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Potkins |first=Meghan |date=February 28, 2018 |title=Take a peek inside Calgary's new Central Library ahead of November opening |url=http://calgaryherald.com/news/local- news/take-a-peek-inside-the-new-central-library-ahead-of-november-opening |work=Calgary Herald |accessdate=April 27, 2018}}</ref>
