New €7.95m Citywest Library expected to be ready by mid 2026

The construction of the new €7.95 million Citywest Library is expected to be completed by “mid-year”, with a fit-out set to follow before it is open to the public.

The new library will be located at Citywest Shopping Centre and is on schedule to be completed by mid-2026, as planned for when the project was given the green light back in 2024.

It is expected to be a three-storey building and was previously said to be one of the top 20 largest libraries in the country when completed by the then-county librarian Paul Fusco.

The Fortunestown Local Area Plan, which includes Citywest, had recommended the development of a library to serve the growing population of the area.

The new library is expected to serve a population of 35,000 across Citywest, Saggart and other areas, and it is planned to have satellite libraries linked to it, such as Rathcoole.

Rathcoole and the rest of the Citywest-Saggart-Rathcoole corridor is currently serviced through the council’s Mobile Library service and its weekly public stops in the area.

The development consists of a change of use of a children’s play facility at part ground – and part first- floor level of the existing Citywest Shopping Centre building, as well as a new second floor extension, to create a three-floor public library.

The existing light and stair access from the site’s previous use will provide access to the two upper floors that will contain the main floorspace associated with the library.

The new extension is expected to provide for approx. 635 sq m of public library floorspace together with a west-facing outdoor roof terrace.

The outdoor terrace is understood to provide a setting for quiet reading and interactive programming for those who visit the library.

Associated external works include the provision of 16 short-stay bicycle-parking spaces and two secure long-stay bicycle spaces.

A public consultation is anticipated ahead of the fit-out of South Dublin’s latest library, according to a project update from December 2023.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.