Cardiff Central Library

It's what they call a "landmark building", opened in 2009. If you go on the internet, you'll find a lot about it - 5 floors, over 100 computer terminals for public use, etc. One curious fact is that the sedum grass roof is patrolled by a hawk shared with the nearby Millennium Stadium (Cardiff Arms Park).

Many local people remember using the Old Library, still a much-loved Cardiff building, which operated from 1882 and closed in 1988, when the city got a new purpose-built Central Library.

But amazingly that only lasted until 2006 when it was demolished, along with many other buildings, to make way for the St David's 2 shopping centre.

For the next 3 years the library was in temporary accommodation, and as a regular library user I know that there were no signs directing people to it. Temporary buildings don't really promote a city.

The city's image is certainly well promoted by this new Central Library and there's little danger of not being able to find it. I think its study and reference facilities are probably better, and it has lots of DVDs and CDs to borrow as well as books, but I can't honestly say that I've found it better as a place to borrow books than what went before.