The city library should remain where it is, according to a long-time Maitland resident.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Keith Cockburn thinks the library should be renovated and modernised to prepare it for the future at its current site.
Mr Cockburn, a former member of Friends of Maitland City Library, has proposed extending the building about four metres towards High Street, installing an external glass lift and running a spiral ramp from the ground to the library entrance.
He said a new structure could be built over the existing library and extended towards the river, if Maitland City Council purchased the former motor registry site behind the library.
Two conference rooms on the upper level with large glass windows fronting the river are also part of Mr Cockburn’s vision.
“It is located on one of the more significant intersections in this city and now that the courthouse has been cleaned up, the library needs to follow,” he said.
Mr Cockburn, who has lived in the Hunter for 72 years, said he wanted the community to think outside the square when considering the library’s future.
He wants someone with artistic skills to help him prepare an artist’s impression of his vision.
“There are some people who don’t like my idea, but we are not talking about removing the building, I am talking about building over the top of it,” he said.
“If you move the library down there [civic precinct] 99 per cent of traffic will drive straight past it.
“I envision something like sloping supports coming down the front to where the fountain is.
“I like the idea of an external lift out the front.”
Debate over the future site of the library reignited earlier this month after Cr Philip Penfold argued that the famous fountain on the corner of High Street and Belmore Road should be repaired.
Mr Cockburn has suggested removing the fountain and installing a new one, which would include a large sculpture of an open book, as part of his plan.
The Lions Club of Maitland has said it would contribute up to $10,000 to repair or replace the fountain, but the mayor of Maitland, Cr Peter Blackmore urged caution because the future of the library at its current site had not been finalised.
Friends of Maitland City Library and Maitland Greens member John Brown joined calls to move the city library further into central Maitland near the town hall and Maitland Regional Art Gallery.
