Wednesday Petersen, 7, and her 5-year-old sister May already love going to the library.

Now they have a brand-new one to explore.

The Mount Maunganui Primary School pupils are among the young readers looking forward to the opening of Tauranga’s new Te Ao Mārama – Tauranga Library and Community Hub at 95 Willow St.

May has a particular book she is hoping to find on the shelves.

“My favourite book is Wrong Wrong Wrong,” she said.

Wednesday loves art, so enjoys books with a visual storytelling focus, like Where’s Wally, while their mother Kathlene said another favourite in the household is Hooray, Hooray, It’s Library Day!

The girls visit the Mount Maunganui library every week and are excited about making the new city library part of their regular routine.

Wednesday Petersen, 7, and May Petersen, 5, are looking forward to the new Tauranga Library and Community Hub opening on October 16. Photo / Kelly O’Hara

Kathlene said going to the library has become an important part of family life.

“The library is just incredible. We always go and Wednesday and May always see their friends there,” she said. “I also just went to a cut flower workshop and beekeeping workshop in the last week.”

And May has developed such an appetite for books that it can be hard to put them down.

“We have to take May’s books off her at bedtime now that she’s started school. She loves reading them.”

The girls will not have to wait much longer to explore their new library.

He Puna Manawa will officially open with a ceremony from 9am to 10am on Friday, October 16, followed by a free Community Celebration Day on Saturday, October 17.

For Tauranga, it is a significant moment in the city’s history.

He Puna Manawa is the first new building to be completed within Te Manawataki o Te Papa, the new civic precinct, marking a major milestone for the city centre and wider community.

The Civic Opening on the Friday, hosted by Tauranga City Council and Otamataha Trust, will celebrate the completion of the building and recognise the many people who helped bring the project to life.

Then on the Saturday, the doors will open wide for the community to explore the new library and community hub from 10am to 4pm.

The day will feature free live performances, author talks, guided tours, crafts, cultural experiences, technology demonstrations and activities for all ages.

Innovation Specialists Ella Keogh and Andrew Parker with creations made on a 3D printer at the Creation Station in Tauranga’s new library which is set to open on October 16. Photo / Kelly O’Hara

There will be guided library tours at 10am, 11am, noon, 1pm and 2pm, and for young readers metallic mosaics, sensory activities, a Lego showcase and maker session, a Creation Station Showcase and the Coast to Forest Treasure Hunt.

Author and illustrator Craig Smith will perform at 9.30am in a ticketed event, while story lovers can enjoy lunchtime story time with Rebecca Larsen and Rachel Weston at 12.40pm.

There will also be music and cultural performances throughout the day, including harp, Punjabi Bhangra, Chilean dance and an Opus Orchestra String Ensemble.

Teenagers will have their own programme, with the Teen Takeover running from 1.30pm to 3pm.

The celebration will spill outside, too, with live music, roaming performers dressed as favourite book characters and a magician entertaining visitors around Masonic Park and the library from 10am to 1.30pm.

Children can make their own bookmarks at the Breeze craft station, while the Little Big Markets will be operating down at the waterfront.

The LT McGuinness Zone will offer a chance to get up close to cranes and diggers and the new museum building.

There will be a He Puna Manawa Community Celebration Day on Saturday, October 17 from 10am – 4pm. Photo / Kelly O’Hara

The opening marks the culmination of a huge undertaking, including the relocation of nearly 100,000 books from the former library site on Devonport Rd.

For Wednesday and May, however, the milestone is much simpler.

It means a new place to find their favourite books.

And their dad Daniel Petersen knows just how significant the new building is. He works for Tauranga City Libraries as its creative and marketing coordinator.

For the Petersen family, the library is not simply a place where Daniel works or the girls borrow books.

It is where they see friends, discover stories and make memories.

And when He Puna Manawa opens its doors, Wednesday and May will be among the first generation of Tauranga children to make those memories in the city’s new library.

He Puna Manawa Civic Opening: Friday, October 16, 9am-10am. Free to attend, no RSVP required.

He Puna Manawa Community Celebration Day: Saturday, October 17, 10am-4pm, 95 Willow Street. Free, with activities and performances for all ages.