Counting House to become new city library
Cork’s new city library will be located in the Counting House on South Main Street.
City Council Chief Executive Valerie O’Sullivan announced the purchase at the latest full meeting of Cork City Council.
The site was purchased for €35 million from JPDC Ltd, a part of the BAM Contractors Limited Group in Ireland.
The acquisition was supported by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Government’s Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund.
The Counting House complex extends to just under 7,300 sqm net internal area, which is more than three times the size of the current City Library.
It will feature a new library with capacity to host the existing 500,000-strong catalogue of books, magazines and journals, up to 1,500 events annually, and receive around 300,000 enquiries a year.
It will also feature 300 study spaces, a shop and café space; lecture, performance and exhibitions spaces; sections for children, teens, and young adults; an expanded Cork Local Studies section; and an expanded Rory Gallagher Music Library.
A Part 8 planning process will be required to adapt the complex, and will need to be approved at a future full meeting of Cork City Council.
O’Sullivan said the Counting House complex is a natural home for a flagship cultural institution such as the Cork City Library.
“Its reuse reflects international best practice, where cities such as Helsinki, Aarhus, London, and Montreal have transformed historic, industrial or commercial buildings into vibrant, modern libraries that become major civic attractions. It is fitting that this building is now in public ownership to serve the people of Cork and those who come here for generations to come,” she said.
Well received
Fianna Fáil Cllr Terry Shannon said the Counting House was an “ideal location” for the new library.
He said the new location will be “on the tourist trail” and will be an attraction for people in and of itself.
Social Democrats Cllr Niamh O’Connor, who has been active in a local campaign lobbying for a new library, welcomed the announcement and said that the council will need to “move forward with this without any further delay”.
She also welcomed the announcement of a public consultation process as part of the part 8 planning process.
Independent Cllr Kieran McCarthy said the news was “exciting” and he looked forward to the public consultation on the development.
He also highlighted that “as the Grand Parade site is left behind, it is also important that a plan is created for the wider dereliction on the Grand Parade adjacent the library”.
This article was produced with the support of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme funded by Coimisiún na Meán.