The urban landscape of Dun Laoghaire is defined principally by the large scale of the harbour and by a series of terraces framing views down the slope to the sea.  These terraces are set up by a strong urban grain of plots running perpendicular to the descending avenues.  The building is set back close to the line of Haddington Terrace and takes the line of the original side of the Royal Marine Hotel in order to re-establish the boundaries between town and sea.  At the same time these repaired edges are designed to be permeable, allowing routes and views to connect through and across the site.

The volume is conceived as a large roof floating over the complex ground plane of the park and cultural centre.  In this way the building appears heavier at the top than at the bottom, allowing the lower levels to open out to the park and to Haigh Terrace while the upper library levels become more closed to allow for a quieter atmosphere and for the storage of books.  The building is arranged with the cultural centre on the ground floor opening out to the park and with the library above entered from Haigh Terrace.  The Cultural Department and the Library Headquarters are placed at the back of the site allowing for easy connections to the public functions and to the loading facilities in the basement.   The tall shared foyer along the south facade connects all the elements of the brief as well as connecting the new public space to Haigh Terrace.