Austin's New Central Library Grand Opening Scheduled for this Weekend

The City of Austin welcomes the new Austin Central Library as a place of consequence. With a build that greatly resembles Austin City Hall, the library is said to absorb the environment and takes its guests to unheralded heights.  

The floor surfaces in the 198,000-square-foot, multi-angled structure are made of cut mesquite blocks. This material is so hard that it once was popularly used to pave the streets of San Antonio.  The vast windows and interior surfaces transmit huge volumes of natural light, while perforated metal sunscreens, sometimes rendered as screen porches, sometimes as literary quotations punched through the metal, protect the airy six floors of the library from heat and glare.

The new Library is completed with a rooftop garden that will soon be accompanied by a coffee bar. By design, the library offers a lot of technological gadgets, including a laptop vending machine, but books cover acres and acres of shelves with space to spare. One can even detect that dusty old-book smell amid all the new furniture and decor.

An events room that can hold more than 600 standing guests — perhaps 400 for a seated dinner is available. Parking is available below deck, not just for cars, but also separately for bikes, for which the library has hired a “bike concierge” on the Shoal Creek trail for cycling needs.

There is enough room for almost 1 million potential guests. It is believed that this new addition to the city will change the dynamic of downtown. The Grand Opening is scheduled this Saturday, October 28th from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

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