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Two hours drive south-east of
Melbourne in Victoria’s picturesque
Gippsland Valley, Moe has been
hard hit by unemployment. With a
reputation as deprived and something
of a poor cousin, the town badly needed
a self-esteem boost. With this library
and community centre it could hardly
have hoped for better. Architects FJMT
have delivered a grand civic building of
enticing legibility and fine human scale.
Slender in plan and open in section,
a deft glazing program flows along
its length in a way that gently woos
and invites the passerby.
Sweeping curves, cantilevers and piazzas are among the
signals of a town-friendly resource connected to the
whole community. Libraries and community centres are
among architecture’s new page-turners. As a genre, they
are on the best-seller lists for municipalities keen to
provide a social platform and showcase for real
community engagement.
A pair of cantilevered, box-like ‘binoculars’ create forms
reassuring and inviting. A rooftop garden provides
elevated green spaces while a sculptural staircase and
skylight glazing help suffuse it with daylight.
Occupying plum real estate in the civic heart, the new
centre replaces a ragged asphalt strip of rail station
car-parking with a story of hope and redemption.
A grand central staircase invites visitors
and staff to circulate across both levels.
Roof glazing brings striated light and
shadow deep into the body of the building.
PROJECT
Frank Bartlett Library & Moe Service Centre,
Moe, Victoria
ARCHITECT
Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp (FJMT)
PRINCIPAL GLAZING
Viridian EnergyTech ™ , SolTech ™ Grey,
ComfortPlus ™ Bronze, Clear Double Glazed Unit
TEXT, IMAGES & FILM
Peter & Jenny Hyatt