New Library Coming to Waterloo in 2022

A new library is taking shape on the east side of Waterloo.

In 2020, the City dedicated a portion of its Canada Community-Building Fund investment to building the Eastside Branch library, slated for completion in spring of next year.

This has been a project many years in the making. In 2015, the City partnered with Waterloo Public Library to find a suitable location for a fourth library in the region. In 2017, the City agreed to expanding the RIM Park Manulife Sportsplex and Healthy Living Centre on the east side of Waterloo to include the new library. Tenders were awarded last year and construction got underway shortly after.

The Eastside Branch Library will be a 12,395 sq. ft. one-story building addition, 2,275 sq. ft. renovation of existing space, plus a 646 sq. ft. balcony for a total library area of 15,316 sq. ft.

The library will feature a collaborative, open space that will support community programming, and an additional enclosed outdoor natural space or “forest school” for environmental and educational activities. It’s also energy efficient, with one feature of the library being a Trombe wall for passive solar heating of the building.

Libraries play an important role in communities, and the addition of the Eastside Library will expand service provision to citizens in that region, providing more opportunities for learning and participation in library programming.