July 23, 2005
Green and bear it
The National Library's 14 gardens are part of its award-winning green features, but only four are open to the public. What a pity
By Tay Suan Chiang
VISITORS to the newly opened National Library could be forgiven for thinking they have stumbled into The Secret Garden by Francis Hodgson Burnett.
Always open: The spa garden on level 10 (above) is open to the public and has seven 12-m tall plant towers, a reflexology path and pebbled pathways. It looks up to the pod (below) on level 16. -- DESMOND FOO
The building in Victoria Street has 14 pockets of greenery located up and down its 16 floors and basement.
The gardens, with vegetation forming 35 per cent of the total site area, provide a relaxing respite from the endless bookshelves and all that reading.
A pity then that only four of the 14 are open to the public.
'The gardens were mainly to help keep the building cool. That is why not all are open to the public,' says Mr Surjit Singh, the library's director of properties and facilities management.
The four gardens that are open to the public are: The sky garden on Level 5; spa garden on Level 10; and two within the Central Lending Library in Basement 1.
Even then, the two in the basement are accessible only during certain times, such as when the library holds literature and poetry reading sessions outdoors.
One of these features sculptures by local artist Chong Fah Cheong that were commissioned for the library. The sculptures sit against a backdrop of 5,000 bricks salvaged from the remnants of the old Stamford Road library.
The gardens on levels 5 and 10 are the only two with free access during library hours.
The one on Level 10 is the most impressive. The space - soaring to a height of three storeys - features seven 12m-tall plant towers for growing multiple plants in vertical stacks.
Sometimes open: One of two gardens in the basement within the Central Lending Library, it is open to the public only during reading sessions.
In keeping with its theme as a spa garden, you can find plants such as aloe vera as well as pebbled paths for those seeking a spot of reflexology.
Landscaping for the 14 gardens was done by landscape consultants DLQ Design, while maintenance will be by landscaping company Eco Flora.
Mark of successAll in, a total of 120 species of tropical plants helps to lower the temperature surrounding the building and reduce the load on air-conditioning.
So, it is no surprise that the building was designed by Malaysian architecture firm T R Hamzah and Yeang, which is known for its climate-sensitive projects.
Malaysian architect Ken Yeang, who designed this library, has a reputation for using plants both inside and outside his buildings.
Never open: This garden on Level 7 is one of 10 gardens that are not accessible to the public.
For him, plants are not just decorative items but essential in helping to make a building more eco-friendly.
One of his most famous works is the Menara Mesiniaga Building in Selangor, which has segments cut out of several floors to insert high-rise gardens.
The gardens in the new library are just part of other eco-conscious features which won it the Platinum Award for the Green Mark Scheme. The award, by the Building and Construction Authority, is its highest for environmentally friendly buildings here.
One of these energy-saving features is the use of automatic blinds that are lowered in the late afternoon when the sun's rays into the building are strongest.
Others include shade fins all around its facade to keep the sun off its wide glass windows; daylight sensors that dim or switch off the lights when there is enough natural light; and rain sensors that shut off garden sprinklers when there is enough water for the plants.
Even the building is built off the sun's east-west path and the atrium spaces are located to channel breezes using natural ventilation.
Still, it may be the spa garden that is the big attraction for visitors.
Housewife Susie Lee, 35, was excited when she heard about it. She says: 'After shopping at Parco Bugis Junction opposite and borrowing my books, I can still get a foot reflexology session at the library.'
