Barnsley Library To Close

On 21st March.

I'm in two minds about this. Top end of Shamble St really needs a face lift but I can't say I have much faith in the council at the minute.

 

Aren`t they going to be buiding another college block there?

 

You should try Wakefield Council !
The new market hall has only been built for 6 years and there are now plans to demolish it and build a new cinema !! Fecking mental !!!

 

That's the plan. Can see it not coming to fruition though.

 

What a joke Barnsley Council are - wasting £4m building a new library, when they already have a perfectly good library in situ. It wouldn't happen in private enterprise - but because its public money, they feel they can just go out and waste it...

Its all the fault of our "dear leader", Sir Steve, and his bumbling councillors. Its a sad day for Barnsley, and its hardly going to help our standings in the national educational attainment league tables. I think we stand in the bottom four. I could make a link here to our beloved reds, but I will refrain, because Danny will keep us up... :biggrin:

 

Are the shops on that row going as well or just the Library aint seen any plans or owt?

 

The supposed regeneration that never happened has gone a long way to killing the town centre, from Cheapside all the way down to the bus station no long term leases were available due to the fact it was due to be demolished. It never happened, the economy here has nose dived, yet Steve gets a Knighthood.

Wouldn't be surprised if the same thing happened on Shambles Street. I notice when it comes to new council buildings (that lets be honest weren't really needed), they're built without delay.

 

To be honest that row of buildings on shambles street looks awful, I personally see no harm in flattening it all in order to build a new college block. Why not entice more students to the area, it will promote growth in the town centre with extra students and plus if there building a new s****y library then what's the big deal. We've got to move with the times instead of being stuck in the dark ages with our shabby buildings.

I'm all for change and restructuring, let's give the next generation a town to be proud of and not a town stuck in the mid 1900's

 

The people moaning about it on here - 1 question, do you use the library often?

 

It would seem sense to me to leave the Library where it is and build a Sixth Form College next to it where the shops are, then they can link the Library with the College so its more of a Community facility

 

It does seem a strange building to knock down, not going to win any awards for architecture but it's not exactly an ugly building. I think the issue is though it would probably look out of place incorporated into what seems like a mainly glass building which will stretch all the way to John Rideal house.

I've totally lost faith in the council to complete these kinds of projects though, Shambles street was supposed to have been completely redeveloped with another council building anyway, although they ended up buying the office part of Gateway Plaza instead so they've been looking for an excuse to get shut of that side of Shambles street.

You have to wonder what they were thinking in the 70's, of all the buildings that went up during that era the library is getting knocked down, the county way offices and TEC building are scheduled for demolition and the indoor markets were supposed to be getting knocked down but now look like just being refurbed, yet buildings over a century old are under no threat.

I wonder if in 30 years time we'll look back on the stuff being built now and be looking to demolish that as well! The bus station is nice inside but I wonder how much maintenance is needed on the outside to keep it looking fresh? Same goes for those buildings behind Regents Street.

 

Point well made but I think the council feel they have to start competing with neighbouring areas and if that's building 'this day and age' buildings then it looks like thats what will be happening.

 

There are worse buildings in Barnsley. That was a state of the art, purpose built, accessible public facility. It is still a very functional and well maintained building. Are they going to build a bigger, better library?

 

If you go by what the council proposals read then it's going to be so etching pretty good. The current library is just a drab looking purple bricked building with the odd bit of concrete panelling here and there!

 

What got me is it wasn't that long ago (maybe 2005?) that it was closed for months and had a major refurb. Must have cost a few million and as a facility you really couldn't argue with it. They are saying the relocation to Wellington House will only be a for a few years but it will probably end up being a permanent arrangement.

 

Rather they got rid of that vile Metropolitan building that's been derelict for years

 

I used to go to the library quite a lot but haven't been for years, if there's a book I want I download it, if there's some information I need to find out then I go on the internet, libraries are outdated now it's just the old dears getting their historical romances out.

 

All this knock it down and start again business.... looking at pictures of old barnsley i think it was criminal that some of the places in the town center were knocked down. Most places have heritage and old buildings to be proud of. What has chuffing barnsley town center got now apart from town hall and butterfields / white hart buildings and a couple up shambles street. All we are left with are chuffin eyesores that don't stand the test of time.

I know the librarys not mega old but there are a hundred other "modern" **** holes that could be sorted out instead i.e those chuffin horrid buildings over the market area.

 

Like my 80 year old mother who gets books out everyweek but is so good with technology she can't work her dvd player let alone acomputer and kindl.

She goes to Wombwell library and the council were in the middle of selling that off when it was pointed out it wasn't theirs to sel as the building had been bequeathed. (Is it a Bodlean library or some such...too late at night to look it up) ?


Not everyone has all this modern day stuff.

 

Yes but you don't need a huge library anymore including one floor dedicated to reference to lend out novels to OAPs, a smaller library will be fine.

In time older people who have grown up with the internet will not need libraries either and they will all close.