From Water Tower to Library : Adaptive Reuse Gives Defunct Building New Life

The renovation and reuse of old buildings is an eco-friendly approach not only reduces urban waste, but also revitalizes cities. The"Water Tower" Library on Longyue Road in Longgang, a county-level city in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, serves as an successful case. The original water tower was built in 1983, which was the representation and memory of the city. However, this construction was abandoned in the process of urbanization. The“Water Tower” Library rebuilt on the dilapidated building gave it a new life. The whole library of three storeys covers an area of 1,600 square meters with a modern transparent box-style building decorated with elements such as old faucets, water pipes, and water meters. In this case, this modern library is coupled with an overwhelming weight of history. Acting as a new landmark of Longgang city, the revitalized library has become an important place for local residents to read and study, attracting a constant stream of visiting tourists.

The city’s"Water Tower" Library is not merely a renovation of Longgang’s old water factory. It is also an exemplary instance of repurposing abandoned buildings by revitalizing them and maximizing their environmental and sustainable potential.

Practitioner of environmental protection

It is clear that the reuse of abandoned buildings can have positive impacts on the environment. Instead of demolishing and rebuilding, renovation can save valuable raw materials and reduce energy consumption which is required in the construction of new buildings. In turn, it can effectively reduce the generation of construction waste, environmental pollution, and the waste of resources. The renovation process additionally applied plenty of green and energy-saving technologies, such as glass curtain walls, glass stairs and glass bookshelves, which increase natural daylight and reduce indoor lighting power consumption; solar energy that significantly reduces energy consumption and carbon emissions was also used, thereby minimizing its environmental impact.

Protector of City Memory

The transformation of historic buildings can be seen as a way to protect city history. The“Water Tower” Library serves as a carrier of memorable heritage of the city by integrating the development history of Longgang city into the building. On the beautiful glass stairs in the library, every two of them are marked with big events promoting the development of this city. Therefore, each and every visitor to the library could have a general idea of the reform and development process and cultural spirit of Longgang.

Catalyst for Economic Growth

The revitalization of abandoned buildings offers more than just resource conservation, it also serves as a catalyst for economic growth within the city. For instance, the"Water Tower" Library in Longgang has provided various job positions for the locals, including workers in the study and cultural activity planners, thereby driving the development of the local economy. By repurposing these transformed spaces, Longgang has created multifunctional areas for cultural, tourism, and commercial purposes, ultimately enriching urban life and enhancing the overall quality of the city.

Service Provider of Local Community

The“water tower”Library has been instrumental in the development of local community. As the basic unit of sustainable urban development, the community, benefits from the construction of cultural facilities. These facilities not only improve the cultural literacy of the residents and quality of their life, but also promote the integration and overall development of the community. All three layers of the“Water Tower” Library contain a collection of more than 25,000 books, with various functional areas including leisure areas for viewing the landscape and for reading, a multifunctional salon, bookstore, water bar, dessert workshop and others. In this library, besides basic lending services, interactive activities like cultural salon and book sharing have also become a routine. In this regard, the Longyue Road City’s Study with friendly and comfortable environment and diversified services has played a crucial role in providing a place for residents to study, communicate, have fun and spend their leisure time. As a result, the city’s study has already been seen as a life center of the community, which not only enriched the cultural life of residents, but has also been a facilitator of community development. (Tu Shumin,Yin Yelin,Du Xueqin,Yang Shoujiang)