The demonstration kitchen at the expanded and remodeled Centennial Branch of the Anoka County Library, MN, features a close up camera that shows (and records) exactly what’s cooking. The room doubles as a Maker space and can open to the main library through sliding glass doors for larger events. CREDITS: Leo A Daly, architect; Corey Gaffer, photo.

In restoring the South Branch of Cleveland Public Library, an original Carnegie building, designers were tasked with carrying out unrealized 1911 plans for an addition and updating for modern library service. Modern accents patterned on the historic building’s geometry pair with original dark woodwork and shelving. CREDITS: HBM Architects, architects; Roger Mastroianni, photo.

An innovative facing and shelving arrangement of the media collection at Ohio’s Auglaize County Library’s Wapakoneta Branch creates a room within a room feel while preserving the option of flexible rearrangement as circulation shifts to digital and the footprint contracts. CREDITS: Fanning Howey Associates, architects; David Sugar, courtesy of Fanning Howey, photo.

By clustering its collection into a concentrated island of shelving rather than traditional stacks, Pittsburgh’s Baldwin Borough Public Library frees up flexible space for seating which is used for tutoring, a summer teen hangout, and a community meeting place. CREDITS: GBBN Architects, architects; Ed Massery, photo.