Estonia's RKAS to sign National Library design agreement on Thursday

  • 2019-08-21
  • BNS/TBT Staff

TALLINN – Representatives of the Estonian state real estate manager RKAS and architectural firm Sirkel & Mall will on Thursday sign an agreement on designing the reconstruction of the National Library building. 

The building of the National Library on Tonismagi Hill in central Tallinn, opened 26 years ago, has long been waiting for reconstruction as it is uneconomical and its room outlay does not meet present-day requirements. The building's communications are in need of an overhaul as well, the National Library said. 

The government set apart 1.3 million euros in this year's state budget for starting the reconstruction of the building. Last week the government decided to fund the reconstruction with 53 million euros to which will be added 10 million euros for equipment and technological upgrading. 

The reconstruction works are scheduled to last from 2022 till 2027, after which also the Tallinn-based units of the National Archives will move into the building.  

The building of the National Library was designed by the architect Raine Karp, with Sulev Vahtra as the interior architect. Its construction started in 1985 and was completed in 1993.