Southland District Council has confirmed a concept plan for Winton Library will be presented to councillors next month.
Group manager services and assets Matt Russell said the project to reinstate the library and office facilities for the community has made great progress in recent months.
“We recognise the time it has taken to get to this point and appreciate the patience and understanding of the community given the events of 2020,” he said.
“We’re excited to now take another important step forward with this project.”
Russell said the focus was on developing a great community facility whilst maintaining flexibility for the future.
“This concept plan incorporates library services, community spaces and access to Council staff and services. It also features the functionality needed to meet the expectations of our customers both today and into the future” he said.
SDC councillors will review the concept plan in late August with the intention of determining the next steps including when construction might begin. The preliminary budget estimate for the project is approximately $1.4 million.
A seismic assessment recently completed determined the Wemyss Street building was safe and able to be increased to 100 percent of national building standards as part of the proposed works.
The Winton Library was closed in May last year after mould spores were discovered. In November, the results of comprehensive testing following remedial works confirmed the mould issue and fungal contamination had been eliminated.
The temporary Winton library and office will continue to operate from the RSA Hall in the foreseeable future.