Wellington City Council's sneak peek inside empty central library labelled 'depressing' and 'heart-breaking'

Wellington City Council's "tour" inside its closed central library has saddened some of the community, who say they just want the building back.

The library has been closed for more than two years due to structural vulnerabilities, and the council recently began the laborious process of packing up the 30-year-old heritage listed light fittings and chairs.

The library - opened in 1991 - has been listed as a Category 1 Historic Place as a major work of Ian Athfield, one of New Zealand's most renowned architects of recent times.

It's the first heritage place listed from the 1990s.

On Tuesday, the council decided to give Wellingtonians a peek inside the library – but it wasn't as well received as it may have hoped.

The short video posted to Twitter showed a dizzying time-lapse of the central library, with debris visible on the floor and chairs piled up in the middle of the room.

Did you miss me?

The Central Library has been closed for over two years now due to structural vulnerabilities, so what does it look like inside?

Take a tour and then find out more in the story below: https://t.co/YF9cWANyFW#OurWellington #TōTātouPōneke pic.twitter.com/5mu9c8x6No

— Wellington City Council (@WgtnCC) October 18, 2021

Comments on the post remarked how "depressing" they found it.

"This makes me so sad. I spent many, many hours here during my student days. I look forward to it reopening when I'll be able to share it with own children," wrote one person.

"Oh man this is actually just depressing," wrote another.

"I know it was shared with good intentions but I got depressed seeing the state of our once lovely library," said a third.

The council spokesperson who posted the video appeared disheartened by the response, replying "ah damn, not what I intended! Sorry".

An accompanying press release to the video detailed some of the reasons why the building looked slightly derelict.

"Staff of both the library and the café had only a few hours to say their farewells and leave so inside you can still see the remnants of its past inhabitants. Children's dress-ups, CD covers and old wooden library rolodexes sit patiently waiting to go their new home."

Over the next four years, the library will be strengthened by adding base isolators like that of Te Papa and modernised by expanding levels three and four.