Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

New library building now open to the public (+video)

Shauni James
By Shauni James
Rotorua Weekender reporter·Rotorua Daily Post·
26 Jul, 2016 10:16 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The first person through the doors of the temporary Rotorua District Library was also the first to walk into the Haupapa St library 25 years ago.

The temporary library on the corner of Pukuatua St and Amohia St opened to the public yesterday after a blessing.

Rotorua's Phyllis Sturmfels, 90, who was the first through the door, said it looked a lot different from when she had a tour with library director Jane Gilbert last week.

"It's nice to see so many people came in early to have a look."

Mrs Sturmfels first started going to the library in the late 1950s.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

She said it was now much bigger and "there were no such things as computers when I was young".

"Put it this way, it's just getting better and better."

Blessing of the new temporary library building this morning.  Photo/Stephen Parker
Blessing of the new temporary library building this morning. Photo/Stephen Parker

She said her children had grown up using the library and as a family they would have checked out thousands of books over the years.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"In some ways you can say it [the library] is the centre of the whole community."

She is a life member of the Friends of the Library, which has raised thousands of dollars for the facility over the years.

Mrs Gilbert said it felt wonderful to have the new building open.

"It feels good. It's fresh and new. Everybody worked extremely hard. I'm so proud of my staff, they worked extremely hard. The movers couldn't have done it themselves."

Local Stacey Barnett said she thought the new library was "really nice" and open, with a communal and friendly feel.

She said she and son Leon Barnett, 7, went to the library at least once a week as Leon was home-schooled.

Leon had Tourettes Syndrome and the library was somewhere where he felt relaxed and comfortable, she said.

"He feels really happy and confident here."

The re-location of the library is temporary, with the revamp of the Haupapa St building expected to take about 18 months.

Once refurbished, it will share the building with child-health services to be provided by Lakes District Health Board, which will become a tenant.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post
|Updated

Median house price falls in Auckland, increases in regions

Premium
Editorial

Editorial: Hoons in cars and on bikes have no place in our communities

Rotorua Daily Post

Snapchat predator raped teen while on bail for similar offending


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Median house price falls in Auckland, increases in regions
Rotorua Daily Post
|Updated

Median house price falls in Auckland, increases in regions

Reinz report shows sales volumes below expected, more days to sell.

14 Jul 09:54 PM
Premium
Premium
Editorial: Hoons in cars and on bikes have no place in our communities
Editorial

Editorial: Hoons in cars and on bikes have no place in our communities

14 Jul 05:00 PM
Snapchat predator raped teen while on bail for similar offending
Rotorua Daily Post

Snapchat predator raped teen while on bail for similar offending

14 Jul 05:00 PM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP