SURREY - Libraries are no longer stodgy places that merely store books.

The modern library, as designed by architect Bing Thom and his design team, is a stylishly bright and friendly space that doubles as a community centre where people can drop by to relax and have fun.

"Libraries are no longer a place just to store books," Thom said Tuesday in an interview at the library.

"We wanted a whole different approach towards the library to make it more like a community centre."

Thom and his associates were at the new City Centre Library in Whalley to give the media a tour of his stunning creation before it opens to the public later this month.

With its sleek, curvy lines, the $30-million library looks like a stylish cruise ship from the outside.

Step inside and you step into the future. The soft curves continue in the spirals of the ascending floors above the lobby. Large windows offer views of the city and nearly all the surfaces are white.

"There's a feeling of openness, maybe it's a sense of sanctuary; you come in and you feel this sense of quiet calm but yet there is subliminal excitement, but the excitement is not overwhelming," Thom said.

"You're visually teased to explore."

He likened the oculus, a large oval skylight in the middle of the roof, to a sundial.

"As the sun moves around, the shadow patterns will continually change," he noted.

The library will be stocked with about 100,000 books, with room for 150,000, and lots of computers and technology.

Thom admits the design team debated the inclusion of so much white in the building, especially in terms of upkeep.

His view is that a library, a repository for books and knowledge, engenders a certain respect from the public that other buildings might not.

"Give them respect and they will respect the building," he said.

Due to a tight design and construction timeline, Thom's architectural firm used Twitter and Facebook to gather public input for the library's design instead of the customary town hall meetings.

Many of the responders were young people and they wanted "a space that was fun to be in."

"You want the children to come here and have access to many more things than just books."

The library complements Thom's other creation downtown, Central City tower, which is home to SFU Surrey. Thom said the curves of the library follow the curvature of University Boulevard, and although the two designs on that street are originals, they "talk to each other."

mbabic@thenownewspaper.com