These Joints are Jumpin'

Closures, Cutbacks, furloughs, and downsizing are the buzzwords now bandied about in the library community. Money is tight, with libraries confronting funding fallout from a tenuous national economy. One might think libraries would be looking to fold their tents rather than seek out new oases where they can build. But building they are, not in record numbers—in fact, this year matched the second lowest number of completed public buildings since 1985—but with substantial projects that bespeak the health of libraries nationwide.

To make those hard-fought-for funds work better, some libraries are moving toward multiuse facilities. Creativity and community needs combine in buildings where, with a nod to Fats Waller, the joints are jumpin'.

Library Journal's annual Architectural Issue features new buildings and addition/renovation projects completed between July 1, 2002 and June 30, 2003. During this period, 195 public libraries and 31 academic libraries came to fruition.

Among the partnered facilities, Courtland Community Library, CA, has a school for a housemate; the Stafford Library, Woodbury, MN, coexists with an indoor park; the South Valleys Library, Reno, NV (sharing space on our cover as well), is located in a county park; and the Buena Vista Branch Library, CA, includes a 2.5-acre park. In addition, the Oconto PL, NE, newly cohabits with a community hall and senior center, after they were all destroyed by a tornado in 2000; Bell Memorial PL, Mentone, IN, incorporates a daycare and senior center; and the Evergreen District Branch of the Wichita PL, KS, houses a Head Start facility.

The Northwest Branch of the Akron–Summit County Public Library project includes the Northwest Akron Community Center, a walking track, and athletic fields. The Capital Hill Branch of the Seattle PL includes a neighborhood service center. Look for this trend to continue in 2004. For more on the future of library planning and design, see Brian Kenney's 'The Library Reloaded' (Buyer's Guide, LJ 12/03).

The public projects (103 new and 92 additions/renovations) cost upwards of $837 million. Contributing to that bottom line are a number of Los Angeles PL branches, part of City Librarian Susan Kent's mandate to refurbish the system, plus large enterprises in Ft. Lauderdale, FL; Denver; Southfield, MI; and the massive new library in Salt Lake City.

The academic library building profile has shrunk somewhat, with only 31 projects completed, down from 34 in 2002. California State University–San Marcos leads with a new $48.6 million, 200,006 square foot facility. The West Coast also hosts the largest renovation, the Suzzallo Library at the University of Washington, Seattle, at $47.3 million and 325,000 square feet. The Meyer Library and Campus Information Center at Southwest Missouri State, Springfield, is an addition/renovation that cost $29 million. A number of these projects incorporate original use of space and energy efficient systems. For more on environmentally friendly design, see Bill Brown's 'The New Green Standard,' on p. 61.

Librarians continue to respond to economic turmoil and environmental preservation with equal fervor and forward thinking. This year, they may not be building big, but they are certainly thinking big.