Your favourite library is sinking

There’s a double door on the third floor of the Mitchell Library, at the juncture on the stairs where the smell of coffee from the downstairs cafe is replaced by the scent of dust and books. The door divides the study room from the stairwell, its sturdy varnished surface covered in signs. The most recent one renders it redundant. 

“Door not in use,” the notice reads. “Please also ensure it remains locked until it is repaired. Thank you for your cooperation. Venue Management Team. 15/05/23.” It seems a little thing, this broken door, in one of Europe’s largest public reference libraries, that hasn’t been fixed for two and a half years. But it’s the tip of a crumbling iceberg. The Mitchell — an emblem of Glasgow’s history, as well as literally housing it — is cracking. 

The Bell has spoken to multiple library personnel with insider knowledge of the situation, including local patrons, volunteers and a staffer. They paint a worrying picture: flooding, hundreds of outstanding repairs, rooms closed off for years and, most concerning, an existential threat in the form of subsidence — the Mitchell is sinking into the ground it stands on, causing cracks to appear in its foundations. The sinking has stabilised, for now, but the problem will cost an estimated £25m to fix, admit Glasgow Life, the council’s arms length organisation responsible for the Mitchell. So: what is the future of Glasgow’s most beloved library?