Birmingham Opens Europe’s Biggest Lending Library

Birmingham, Britain's second city, is opening with great fanfare the new central Library of Birmingham, described as Europe's largest lending library and costing some £188 million ($291 million). Funded from the city's own coffers, the library building has an eye-catching (and somewhat controversial) design from Dutch architectural practice Mecanoo, and is one of the iconic projects in a cycle of urban regeneration under Birmingham City Council's Big City Plan that also includes the Birmingham Repertory Theatre,