THIS is the first glimpse of how Hereford's library and Maylords shopping centre will look after an ambitious £22 million revamp.
Artist impressions show a striking, airy interior for Maylords, part of which will become a library when the existing museum and library building becomes what is described as a new "cultural attraction and events space".
The large escalator currently occupying the shopping centre atrium will be replaced by a sleek modern staircase occupying half the space.
A fabulous rooftop garden with sweeping views over the city will crown what is expected to be a dazzling refit of the old museum and library in Broad Street. There will also be a virtual reality display showing views of the city from the past.
Outside Maylords, the "under-used" Trinity Square will become a vibrant venue for outdoor performances.
Herefordshire Council is particularly excited about the future of the old library.
Head of procurement Gemma Davies said: “If we get this right, we will have an internationally acclaimed museum. People will come to see the building itself, not just the contents.”
Yesterday, we reported that the new vision for Maylords and the Herefordshire museum and art gallery are part of a government-backed £22 million Stronger Hereford package of improvements to the city.
A “business case” outlining how the money will be spent on both projects will be submitted to the Government “in a couple of weeks”, Herefordshire Council’s director of economy Ross Cook said at a presentation on Wednesday (May 25).
Planning applications are then expected to be lodged shortly after.
“Our beautiful museum has been left to its own devices for some time. But we have great people who will now give our city a cultural centre,” Coun Davies said.
“People say, ‘why don’t you spend money on roads instead’, but visitors will spend more when they come here."
Maylords Orchard shopping centre was built in 1984 and bought by the council for £4 million in June 2020.
Architect Emma Taylor explained how part of the centre will become a “digital and cultural hub” alongside its existing shops, with building work scheduled to begin next February.
Externally, it “needs to draw people in” from key nearby viewpoints via the “underused” Trinity Square, she said, which the café to the left of the entrance will “spill out into”.
The square “used to be a regular space for performances, and we want to bring that back”, Coun Davies said.
Inside, the large escalator at the centre of the main atrium will be replaced by a staircase, “which will occupy half as much space”, Ms Taylor said.
Occupying both floors, the library will be larger than its current floor space, and will have study areas “dotted around both floors”, she added.
Meanwhile, work to transform the current museum and library on Broad Street “could start in the middle of next year”, Ms Taylor’s colleague Paul Neep said.
Re-imagining the listed building was “a complicated process”, he said. “It has issues, and work is need to secure its future. There is limited access to the upper floors, which are falling into disrepair.”
The renovation will include insulation leading to 70 per cent less energy use.
“So there will be a cost uplift at the start of around £0.5 million, but a £17 million saving over the 60-year lifespan of the building,” he said.
Inside, the new exhibition space would be four times larger than that at present, he explained. Internal areas will be opened up, creating venues for school parties and events, while a curved staircase will give access to the rooftop area.
Here, “great views of the city” will be augmented by virtual reality, “to show how it used to look”, Mr Neep said.
Coun Davies added on this: “In any other city, these views would be used by now. We can’t over-sell them.”
But the Grayson Perry exhibition in the art gallery in December had thrown up accessibility issues for some. “Everyone should have access,” she said.
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