Te Whare Whakatere Ashburton Library & Civic Centre

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Civic heart

Pride of place

Te Whare Whakatere - Ashburton’s District Council and Library provides a civic identity and enhances the urban heart of itscommunity.

The Ashburton District Council sought a versatile space to successfully accommodate a range of public services. These include the library, meeting rooms/event spaces, public and staff amenities, a café, a recording studio and learning lab, executive suites, Council offices, an IL4 Emergency Operations Centre, and, associated externalspaces.

A three storey mass timber structure provides 6,050m2 of floor area for public and civic activities that anchor and activate this prominent corner site and refurbished civic plaza adjacent to the high street. Its ‘L’ shaped form shelters a well-used public courtyard from the legendary Canterbury nor’ westerly winds, providing an outdoor space shared by the library and Emergency OperationsCentre.

Te Whare Whakatere is a welcoming place for the community that respectfully reflects a connection with the whenua (land), mana whenua (people of the land) and the history of the Ashburton district. This is expressed through the architecture and landscape design and enriched through collaboration with Artist Fayne Robinson, who integrated mahi toi into thebuilding.

Pioneer Hall, a single storey brick heritage building has been carefully integrated into the building through careful restoration, seismic upgrade and reimagination as the home of the children’s story timelibrary.

The agricultural backbone of the district is further acknowledged through the mass timber, bowstring steel roof trusses reminiscent of pivot irrigators along with a curved stainless steel mesh screen, a nod to grain silos and dairy tanks. New Zealand wool carpets feature within selected rooms showcasing local flora and fauna motifs from the region including wetlands along with a whimsical illustration of the mythical black panther within the children’slibrary.

Te Whare Whakatere incorporates numerous sustainable and energy-efficient features including mass timber construction, artesian bore heating and cooling systems and energy conservation features and was awarded excellence in the 'Sustainable Building Property Award' by the Property Council NewZealand.

Te Whare Whakatere Ashburton Library & Civic Centre

Civic heart

Pride of place

Awards

Key contacts

Jon Rennie

Sophie Vial

Trevor Watt