Shell Cove Waterfront Centre to include a new library for the area

A development application for the proposed Waterfront Centre - which will include the library on the first floor - have been lodged with Shellharbour City Council.

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The Waterfront Centre will also house a visitors information bureau on the ground floor.

"The library will contain a large collection of books and other library materials integrating technology, and a variety of seating and working arrangements," the application's statement of environmental effects said.

"The design supports a range of uses from educational/book talks, dedicated children's story telling area, private study and publicly accessible meeting rooms and open informal seating."

The new Shell Cove library will replace the one at Shellharbour Village, after a council study identified the need for a larger facility to cater to the growing population in the area.

Proposed opening hours are 10am-5pm Wednesday to Friday, 10am-3pm on weekends.

Any car parking requirements for the centre would be met by those already existing nearby.

The application identified issues of encroachment of the Waterfront Centre on neighbouring lots but said that was "reasonable".

"The encroachment is attributed to the building's articulation and relates purely to the shape of the building and the use of timber cladding and timber shading fins which wrap around the curved form of the whole building," the statement of environmental effects said.

"Further, the elements which protrude the south-eastern elevation, and which are subject to the larger encroachment also function as a form of shelter, similar to an awning."

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