The city library and cultural centre on Avenue Céramique, designed by Jo Coenen and opened in 1993. The building is a landmark of Dutch architecture from the 1990s — a confident Postmodern composition with glass bridges, interior ramps, and open reading floors that deliberately inverts the closed, monumental form of the traditional library.
Beyond the library, the centre houses the regional archives (including an important collection of materials from the Maastricht Treaty negotiations) and the European Journalism Centre. Exhibitions and events run throughout the year. The building is free to enter and worth visiting even if you don't need a book — it is one of the better public interiors in the city.