Construction begins on new Newbridge Library
Kildare County Council was delighted to welcome Minister for Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and the Marine, Minister Martin Heydon T.D. and Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht and at the Department of Transport, Jerry Buttimer T.D. to Newbridge to mark the beginning of the construction phase of the new Newbridge Library, County Archives, Local Studies and Cultural Centre.
The new facility will provide a modern public library, a permanent home for Kildare County Archives and Local Studies, and a wide range of cultural, learning, community and digital services in the heart of Newbridge. The project will also include the careful conservation and restoration of the former County Library building, an Art Deco protected structure dating from the 1930s.
With an overall project cost of approximately €21 million, the development is supported by Government funding, including €3 million from the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht towards the construction and delivery phase. The project has also been progressed with support from the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund.
Once delivered, the new facility will increase library accommodation from approximately 550m² to 2,340m², providing a four-fold increase in capacity. It will include adult, young adult and children’s library spaces, a County Archives repository, Local Studies and Genealogy Centre, public research and reading rooms, exhibition and gallery space, community meeting rooms, flexible cultural and performance spaces, a Maker Space, sensory room, study spaces, digital learning facilities and enhanced public realm.