Central Library roof to be replaced

20 June 2007

Work begins early next week to replace the Christchurch Central Library roof which has been leaking for some time, resulting in flooding of the administration area and archive storage areas.

Built in the early 1980s, a third floor administration area was added to Central Library in 1996. At the time, a butynol treatment was chosen for the roof but it has proven unsatisfactory, says Christchurch City Libraries Manager Carolyn Robertson.

"The roof has been leaking, flooding the administration area, causing health and safety issues and poor working conditions for staff. In the archives storage room, the damage has been minor and mainly superficial. No other area of the business has been affected."

She says the roof will be replaced with a flexible thermoplastic membrane. This is a high-quality, hardwearing product which is proven to provide long-term protection and to be suitable to Christchurch’s climate.

"The work is expected to take about four weeks to complete and is not expected to cause any disruption to library services, customers or staff."

Christchurch Central Library is the flagship of the 20 Christchurch City Council-owned libraries located throughout the city and Banks Peninsula. It has specialist New Zealand and regional heritage, rare book, Maori and family history collections.

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