A new chapter in the history of Huntingdon Library will be written this weekend when the old building closes for the final time to make way for a new £3.5 million facility for the town and surrounding community. Planning permission has been granted clear

A new chapter in the history of Huntingdon Library will be written this weekend when the old building closes for the final time to make way for a new £3.5 million facility for the town and surrounding community.

Planning permission has been granted clearing the way for demolition to start as part of phase II of the town centre redevelopment - the existing Library will close at 4.00 pm on Saturday, June 30.

Stock, staff and services will then be transferred to an interim facility at nearby Dryden House, in St Johns Street, just behind the police station, where the temporary Library and Learning Centre will open for business at 9.30 am on Tuesday, July 10, offering all services.

In addition, the services available at Dryden House will be boosted by a Mobile Library service which will be available on the Market Square each Wednesday, between 10.00-3.30 pm, when the temporary Library opens.

The old Library which dates from the 1970s and is no longer fit for purpose, will be demolished and construction work is expected to start in the summer. Phase II of the town centre redevelopment includes residential accommodation, a new Library and Records Centre and a modern Register Office.

The cost of the new Library and the Register Office is being part funded by the money generated from the new housing accommodation.

The new building will provide more space than the existing Library and Records Office combined. The facilities will include an improved children's library and homework facilities, new toilets, a meeting room, state of the art storage conditions for precious archive materials, modern study space and extra storage and education space for the nearby Cromwell Museum.

Work on the new Library and Archive Centre is expected to take around 18 months.

County Council Cabinet Member for Service Infrastructure, Councillor David Harty, said: "The new Huntingdon Library is another example of the County Council's commitment to creating and Library, Archive and Information Service which is fit for the 21st century and meets the needs of the Cambridgeshire community.

"We are determined to maintain as near a normal service as possible during the construction of the new state of the art facilities and I am pleased that we have been able to find alternative accommodation for the temporary Library and Learning Centre which is still close to the town centre."

The temporary Library at Dryden House will offer extended opening hours and will be open from:

Monday to Thursday - 9.30 am-5.30 pm

Friday - 9.30 am-7.00 pm

Saturday - 9.30 am-4.00 pm.

For more information telephone 0845 045 5225 or e-mail:

New.huntingdonlibrary@cambridgeshire.gov.uk