Libraries and Learning Centers
It is an exciting time to plan for the library of the future. We are all wondering to what extent our book-based culture can coexist with our quickly advancing digital one. As more library services and content become virtual, what impact will it have on the need for face-to-face and group interaction? Across the country, we have been busy assisting academic and public libraries anticipate the rapidly changing ways information can be stored, accessed, attained, applied and shared.

At the University of Central Florida, where the student population is the largest in the nation and growing, we developed planning recommendations along with Holzman Moss Bottino Architecture that respond to rising demands for seating. Utilizing an automated retrieval system that houses 1.5 million volumes in high-density shelving, existing library collections space is repurposed for additional seating that supports collaborative inquiry and participatory problem solving.

While returning The United States Air Force Academy's existing landmarked library to its original design intent and simultaneously re-envisioning it as the Library of the Future, we worked with Holzman Moss Bottino Architecture to provide informal learning environments that expand the impact of faculty and staff on cadet skills and character and incorporated adaptable frameworks for future leading-edge technologies.

Combining library services for the Western Dakota Technical Institute, Rapid City Public Libraries, and Pennington County afforded us and our colleagues, FourFront Design, the chance to emphasize Rapid City's commitment to lifelong learning by joining academic and public library services together with a direct visual connection to classrooms and labs. See a video of one of our work sessions, and learn what the local community is saying.

A feature of Armstrong Atlantic State University's new academic commons is the absence of books. This space is all about learning and information sharing technologies in a flexible setting suited for interaction. Cogdell & Mendrala Architects is leading this project through construction.

Achieving consensus among a diverse body of stakeholders for the new Guelph Central Library was the key to programming this cornerstone of Ontario's oldest public library system. Serving as a cultural and community center as well, the facility is conceived as part of a mixed-use revitalization development. In coordination with Garwood-Jones & Hanham architects, we identified community needs and values through a series of focus groups including teens, university students, downtown neighborhood groups, the visually and physically impaired, parents of young children, seniors, and general library users. Read more about the public workshop and learn why Guelph's librarian's are excited.

Our 15-year master plan for the Paterson Free Public Library in New Jersey recommends a strong main library (the historic Danforth Memorial Library) supported by three branch libraries, each with a specific programmatic focus. To improve Paterson's library services in the immediate term, the 15-year master plan we proposed with Holzman Moss Bottino Architecture capitalizes on low-investment options such as library kiosks and book ATM's, and service-oriented opportunities, such as leased space and community partnerships.

Our participation in the New Canaan Municipal and Public Use Facilities Master Plan Study with Perkins Eastman and BJF Planning, focused on recommendations for a larger New Canaan Library and the evaluation of its location in relationship to other public facilities. A series of Open House workshops, which drew over 100 community members, presented our primary considerations and showcased alternate planning schemes. This highly involved community voiced their desires for the future of the Library, resulting in a wealth of ideas. Read in depth about the Open House and Public Workshop.

We continuously educate ourselves about the latest trends through active participation in the American Library Association, various state library associations, and routine follow up with our past clients to ask: How did we do? At the 2011 ALA National Conference, we and librarians we have worked with shared insights we learned in a presentation entitled, "Library Evolution: Five, Ten & Fifteen Years After Opening." Discover which three libraries were revisited. Attending the 2011 NY Library Association's annual conference in Saratoga Springs underscored our conviction that the emerging trends in technology have a profound impact on our libraries - improving operations, enhancing our interaction with information, and keeping us all engaged in ways yet imaginable.


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