National Library Update

An update on work that is happening at the National Library building in Wellington. 

Construction on the new Archives New Zealand building at on the corner of Aitken and Mulgrave Streets in Wellington is progressing well. 

This includes work on a two-level link bridge that will connect the new building to the National Library building. An enabling structure will be constructed first to receive the link bridge at the National Library end. 

Testing undertaken in February has shown that the National Library can continue to remain open during the construction period. However, there will be changes to floor layouts and some public services from Monday, 3 April to mitigate the impacts of construction noise for visitors to the Library and kaimahi. 

We expect that the Katherine Mansfield Reading Room will be more protected from the noise of construction and better for quiet reading than the General Reading Room. Based on this, all collection items will now be delivered to the Katherine Mansfield Reading Room and issued there for reading. 

Collection delivery times and turnaround times for some items will change. Please check the National Library website for more details on delivery details. 

We are pleased to confirm that He Whakapapa Kōrero (the document room) housing He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni – Declaration of the United Tribes of New Zealand, Te Tiriti o Waitangi – Treaty of Waitangi and Te Petihana Whakamana Pōti Wahine – Women’s Suffrage Petition, will remain open to the public. 

However, from 28 March, the He Tohu interactive exhibition surrounding the document room will be closed for a period of time to enable construction work that impacts into that space to be carried out. This will require the exhibition to be packed down by 3 April and stored offsite so protective hoardings can be erected. 

The hoardings will go up over three weeks during which one entrance to He Whakapapa Kōrero, He Whenua Kura (the document room and the space in front of the document room) will be maintained and is compliant from an egress perspective. On completion of the hoarding works the current three entrances will be reinstated for use. 

Public and kaimahi safety is of paramount importance during the construction phase. Please note that there will be elevated noise levels at times, and we will do all we can to keep disruptions to a minimum. 

We recognise the impact this will have on visitors, and we will be working with our public programmes staff, learning facilitators and partners for the next few months to re-develop the exhibition experience that is an important part of the overall He Tohu experience.

Tours of He Whakapapa Kōrero, He Whenua Kura with our visitor hosts will continue with a reshaped onsite experience. 

Construction of the link bridge is scheduled to be completed by September 2024. 

Thank you for your patience while we work our way through these changes. For more information on the construction, and for regular updates, please visit the National Library’s website and social media channels.