Accessing McLennan-Redpath materials during the Collections Centre move-in period

Two major parallel infrastructure projects—a new Collections Centre and Fiat Lux will transform the quality of services and spaces the Library offers. Library staff members are preparing for the movement of collections, spaces, and services in advance of renovation and construction activities. Part of this process includes planning the movement of materials to the Collections Centre, which is currently under construction and scheduled to begin ingesting books in mid-2023 and be fully operational in early 2024.

Only holdings located in the McLennan-Redpath Library Complex will be affected by the movement of materials. Holdings in all other branch libraries will be available as usual.

During the move scheduled to occur in the Fall of 2023, access to the McLennan-Redpath Circulating Collection will be significantly reduced. During that time, stacks in the McLennan-Redpath Library Complex will be closed. However, users will be able to source items in the following ways:

1. Existing e-book option
2. Network loan / Interlibrary Loans
3. Purchased/acquired (specific cases)
4. Paging Service*
5. Access to stacks (by appointment, for McGill faculty only) *

*Access to items will depend on what stage of the ingestion process the material is in at the time of the request.

McGill faculty members, students, and staff are strongly encouraged to borrow and keep all the books they anticipate needing from the McLennan-Redpath Library Complex before the start of the 2023-2024 academic year.

Please note that:

• The dates outlined above are tentative and dependent on the timely completion of related activities (i.e., equipment delivery, installation, operation of the robotic system used to ingest materials, etc.).
• The Hathi Trust Emergency Temporary Access Service is not available.
• Access to material in the McGill University Archives and Rare Books and Special Collections (including the Canadian Architecture Collection) will also be significantly reduced during the ingestion period and Fiat Lux construction phase. Services are being developed to minimize the impact of this change. More information to come.
• Throughout the Fiat Lux construction phase, items on course reserve will be kept at the Schulich Library of Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Engineering, scheduled to reopen in mid-2023.
• During the construction of Fiat Lux, set to begin in early 2024, ALL holdings, including rare materials in the McLennan-Redpath Library Complex will be moved to the Collections Centre for safekeeping until Fiat Lux is complete in 2027.

Learn more about Fiat Lux and the Collections Centre (formerly known as the Collection Management Facility):

• Entre Nous with Guylaine Beaudry (September 20, 2022)
• Libraries infrastructure updates (September 7, 2022)
• Fiat Lux Library Project website

Questions? Ask Us!