The new multi-million pound Rainham Library will open its doors on Wednesday, three months after the scheduled ribbon cutting.
The state-of-the-art £4.5m structure marks a new chapter in the regeneration of the area, with the 2,700 sq ft building also boasting retail space, a café, nursery and 16 new flats.
The building, funded by Havering Council and the Mayor of London, has divided opinions in the community since work started early last year.
It was hoped the project would be finished in April, but with the final touches still being applied, people aired their views on the aesthetics of the library.
Andrew Curtin, Havering’s cabinet member for culture at the time, suggested it was the “most perfect building in the borough”.
Coral Jeffery was not on the same page. The former councillor, now of the Rainham Preservation Society, described the red-bricked creation, in the Broadway, as an “abomination” and “monstrous eyesore”.
Inside, the library will hold 3,000 more books, with purpose-built meeting rooms, Smart tables, computers and a study space.
Cllr Melvin Wallace, cabinet member for culture, said: “I know this new library is going to make a big difference within the local community, and I’m really looking forward to the official opening”.
The official opening will take place in September, when the residential section is finished.
Read more:
‘Perfect’ or an ‘abomination’? What do you think of the new Rainham Library?
A new chapter for Havering libraries - which are now technology driven community hubs
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