looking good halifax,

looking good.

Is it just me or was 2014 BIG for Halifax when it came to design?

Are the haters still hating the new logo? I’m still loving it, especially when I see it replacing so much dated material out there.

And with the year coming to a close, the doors of the beautiful new Halifax Central Library are opening. How can you say anything bad about a building that was mentioned on CNN Styles 10 eye-popping new buildings that you’ll see in 2014.

So why all the fuss? Look at it!

The official opening day for the public is not until this weekend however, I had the privilege of joining my friend Amanda on a sneak peak last Friday. We got there at 5:00 pm and bolted up to the fifth floor, mostly to see the view but also because we were told there’d be refreshments. It was pretty incredible to see the harbour and city from up there but the view inside was equally spectacular. The floor to ceiling windows and modern design made us giddy. The coffee and cookies were awesome too.

As we made our way down, floor-by-floor, we saw more and more new things that makes the space usable for everyone… the whole community!

Study booths
Private spaces and comfy chairs to read
Recording rooms
Puppet theatre
Lego stations and a lite-brite wall
Meeting rooms
Green rooms
Auditorium
Two coffee shops
A book conveyor belt that the kids can watch
… and books galore!

My two favourite parts were looking down through the centre and seeing the bridges and stairs crisscrossing the space and the stone work outside creating a path to the doors through colour blocking. I can imagine the outside space will get lots of love in the warmer months.

I won’t spill too many beans and let you see it for yourself, but make sure you get in there and check things out soon! (ha, did you get that? Check things out, library humour).