The Halifax Central Library is The Most Significant Public Building

The Halifax Central Library is the most significant public building completed in Halifax in over a generation. The building is a place for discovery, learning, and social interaction. It’s the new cultural hub for the region, and it has delivered on the promise to be a place for everyone.

The 15,000m2 library was designed through a series of public consultations and focus group sessions. These meetings established ambitious architectural, social, and environmental goals for the project. Consequently, the building accommodates a variety of programs and sustainable features including a 300-seat performance space, music studios, a First Nations Circle, a vegetated green roof, rainwater collection, and a free public space in the heart of the city.

The building is composed of three vertically stacked glass volumes that are topped by a glass cantilever. Each volume is rotated to embrace views of the surrounding ocean and landmarks of the Halifax peninsula. At the centre, an atrium space is anchored by a criss- crossing of stairs and walkways that provide gallery-like circulation from the lobby to the top cantilever. The Halifax Living Room, the building’s most remarkable space, is located in the signature cantilever on the top level. A glass encapsulated reading lounge, it is back-dropped by dramatic views of the Citadel Hill Fortress and the mosaic of buildings that define Halifax.