Garden Place will soon be home to its own Smart Space.

Work to construct a new space to showcase innovation and technological opportunity in Hamilton starts next week at the city’s Central Library in Garden Place.

The Smart Space project stems from a programme – entitled Smart Hamilton - led by Hamilton City Council to develop and embrace innovation and technology to serve the community and make cities more liveable places.

Amid a growing trend with cities across the world seeking to become “smart cities”, the Council is going a step further in its approach - working towards building a “smart society” in the city and across the region.

“However, cities are increasingly starting to realise being “smart” is not just about technology and digital devices. It’s also about better interactions with our community and thinking of innovative ways to improve the experience of the city for those in it,” says Hamilton City Council Chief Executive Richard Briggs.

Hamilton’s Smart Space will be developed in the front of the Central Library, facing Garden Place. Work is expected to start on 15 April, with eight weeks allocated for its transformation.

The Smart Space will be an interactive space to engage in innovation, for the community to participate in defining problems and finding solutions and to test smart technologies. It’s also a place for the Council and a wide range of public and industry partners to showcase smart initiatives and tell stories of innovation from within our city and the wider region.

“In a nutshell, it’s about thinking differently and working better for our community,” says Smart Hamilton Programme Manager Chelsey Stewart.

“Hamilton and the Waikato is bursting at the seams with innovative ideas and technologies. We’re looking forward to opening this space to the public, sharing some of these with the community and hearing what they think,” says Ms Stewart.

The creation of the Smart Space will not impact on customers’ access to the Central Library.

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