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Boatwright Library will undergo expansion and renovation
Boatwright Memorial Library is scheduled for a $23 million renovation and expansion that will create a dramatic new entrance on Stern Plaza and provide nearly 19,000 additional square feet of space. The project also will include a “soaring” nave connecting the new entrance with the current lake-side entrance, opening the building to pedestrians. Users will have access by elevator to all floors from a single location, separate collections of the same type will be housed in a common area and there will be more seating. “We will create a dynamic new environment for collaborative work, showcase a high-end technology learning laboratory, expand our areas for quiet study and add new space to accommodate our growing collections,” said Kathy Monday, vice president for information services. The nave, bathed in natural light from large windows on one side, will provide entrances to the two-story learning commons, “the nerve center of the library,” described Monday. In the commons, “people, ideas, collections, technologies and information resources will be brought together and made easily accessible,” said Monday. The nave also will open on a cloistered garden, where faculty can hold open-air classes and students can read, study and converse over coffee. The learning commons “should facilitate the research process from the point of recognition of a need for information to preparation of presentation of research findings,” said Jim Rettig, University librarian. It will provide space for reference, technical support, a writing center, an academic skills center and advanced technology. The building will include more space for teaching, reading, administrative and staff offices, and user services, while minimizing the number of specialized service points. Total seating in the expanded facility will increase and include individual soft seating, individual carrels, study tables, computer stations, lounge areas and group study areas. Above all, flexibility is paramount to the plan, said Rettig. “We want to maximize the use of public areas by designing them so they can accommodate varied uses over the course of a day.” Several assumptions are built into the building’s plan: that most information recording media (books, microfilm, DVDs) are not duplicated in another source; distribution of the collections among various media will change over time; some collections will grow, but others, such as videotapes, may decline; and new media will emerge and further diversify the collections. Rettig outlined plans for the building and collections in a series of briefings to the University community in the past month. “We want the new library to optimize serendipitous discovery,” Rettig said, noting that stacks will remain open to browsers. The original 1955 section of the building will not be used by the library once the new addition is operational, Rettig said. It could be transformed into administrative offices for other departments on campus. The new entrance and landscaping will complete the academic quad surrounded by Weinstein, Ryland and Jepson halls. Fundraising is ongoing for the project, which is part of the University’s $200 million Transforming Bright Minds capital campaign. |
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