Thousands queue as Wellington Library reopens after seven years

Thousands queued up outside the Wellington Central Library Te Matapihi ki te Ao Nui on Saturday as it reopened for the first time in seven years.

By Krystal Gibbens of RNZ

The building had been closed since March 2019, due to earthquake risk, with pop-up libraries in the city in the interim, while it underwent a $217 million makeover.

Wellington mayor Andrew Little, who donned the mayoral chains for the occasion, reopened the library.

Several past and current members of central and local government attended, including former mayors Justin Lester and Andy Foster.

Little said the project spanned several mayoralties.

"I just happen to be the lucky guy that gets to open it on this really special occasion."

He said the ceremony marked a huge step in reopening the connected Civic Square.

Along with the library, Civic Square was also opened to the public for the first time since it closed for works at the start of 2025.

"Opening the library, opening most of the Civic Square, we've now got a space or spaces for people to come," he said.

"They can come to the library, there's a range of things they can do here, and they can go into the square and just enjoy, relax, meet, gather, protest, do whatever they want to do. The spaces are back."

Other key buildings in the square will also re-open their doors in the next 12 months, with the city art gallery due later this year and the town hall early next year.

Libraries manager Jennifer Parker said they were so excited for the central library to finally be open again.

"It's been a very long time of preparation and fantastic to see the response from the city today."

Parker said they knew the city wouldn't want all the same books from 2019 and they had pruned accordingly.

"The team's been working really hard on making sure the library content and the collection reflects what the city will be excited to see."

Once in the library, people were greeted with choirs dotted throughout, all singing in union, book and genre-related characters crouched among the shelves, along with the splendour of the 250,000 books on display, and other new creative and community spaces, like Capital E.

Jane Shallcrass worked at the library until about 2001 and was at the building's first opening in 1991. This time around, she was part of one of the choirs.

"To see the joy on people's faces, as they came up the escalator and realised the full glory of the new library, and I think to hear the music, it was really great. It was just wonderful to see that."

"All these people are queuing two hours for a library, not for a pop star or anything, but for a library."

Shallcrass said people obviously wanted a central place to gather and the $217m spend on the library was well worth it.

Nelson deputy mayor and choral federation chairperson Pete Rainey said hearing all the choirs singing was a profoundly moving experience.

"I've seen big immersive pieces with lots of choirs, but never with an interaction of the public like this, moving between the floors, which is just so fantastic."

Rainey said Nelson was also about to build a new library.

"I'm here looking with eyes wide open at what's going on and I just think it's fantastic," he said.

Ben Doig from Wellington College was one of the invited school prefects. He couldn't remember the old library well, but was enthusiastic about the new one.

"I'm definitely going to be coming back here to learn and study here, and get all the books out."

Many people were already checking books out.

Emma David-Perrot, and children Amelie and Aubrey had come from Haitaitai for the opening, and had collected a stack of books in the children's section.

David-Perrot expected they'd be back.

"There's a lot of selection here," she said. "The smaller public libraries throughout the suburbs don't have as much."

Pickle & Pie owner Mia Tracey said the reopening was about more than just a building returning, it's about restoring energy and activity to the CBD.

"For businesses in the area, we're hoping to see a real uplift in foot traffic. The library gives people another reason to come into town - even if they're not coming in to shop."

On Saturday, she said the eatery was heaving.

"I would say that most of those people are there for either the opening of the library or just to come in and see what's going on around the town."

She said Pickle & Pie along with several other nearby businesses had organised a promotion to celebrate the reopening.

"It's amazing to see how quickly the businesses could just turn the promotion around. So that just goes to show how excited everybody is."