 |
|
40 Solatube devices (square in celing) and a central spine of skylight near the entire second floor of the Champaign Public Library. |
The new public library in Champaign, Ill., is drawing 2,100 patrons a day, up from 1,600 in 2007. The 122,600-sf facility, which opened in January 2008, certainly benefits from amenities that the old 40,000-sf library didn't have—electronic check-in and check-out, new computers, an onsite coffeehouse. But, it's also drawing rave reviews from the community for its full-building daylighting strategy.
“We're one of the busiest libraries in the nation,” says library director Marsha Grove. “In 2008 we checked out 2.5 million books, and a lot of the comments we hear from patrons say they like all the sunlight in the new building.”
Chicago architect Carol Ross Barney was tasked by the library board with designing a building that would last 100 years. The old CPL had been built in the late '70s and simply didn't age well. Ross Barney's design included clerestory windows and a 115-foot skylight over the central staircase to let the sun shine in. But she also specified tubed daylighting devices instead of ceiling lights in much of the building's second story. The devices, manufactured by Solatube, Vista, Calif., have a plastic-domed, circular opening on the roof that allows natural light to travel down through a mirrored metal tube, through the plenum, and into a diffuser in the ceiling. From there, the light spreads out to the room below.
 |
|
Solatube's Raybender 3000 technology intercepts low-angle light and redirects it down the tube at a steep angle so less light is lost and light is transmitted at almost any time of the day. |
“We always wanted to make the library capable of being fully daylit,” says Ross Barney. “We made one concept where it had a really narrow plate of about 60 feet. Because of the space needs of the library, though, we couldn't make that design work. It was very different than what is thought of as a library.” The daylighting devices, she said, “allowed us to make a more beautiful building. The lighting really is striking.”
Most of the library is lit during the day by the devices and the central skylight. The building is organized on two patron levels; administration offices on the third floor cover only a small portion of the second-floor roof. Glass curtain wall covers three sides of the library. Local general contractor PKD installed 40 of the tubed daylighting devices on the second-floor roof to deliver light directly to the main reading areas of the library. Lighting levels are controlled by an automated sensing system that balances the natural light with supplied light. Panelite glass in the south curtain wall is designed in a honeycomb pattern that reflects most of the direct sunlight that enters the building from the south to minimize solar heat gain.
Public spaces in the LEED Silver-certified library are served by a low-velocity displacement HVAC system with underfloor air distribution to save energy. The building's exterior is clad in limestone. Bamboo was used for flooring, wall, and ceiling finishes. Service desks, end panels, and other interior furnishings are also crafted from bamboo and limestone.
Ross Barney says the building was purposely sited so that the parking lot could someday be converted to a park. “It's all a part of the strategy to make a building that's not just designed for today, but for tomorrow as well,” she says.
Related Stories
| Dec 5, 2013
Exclusive BD+C survey shows reaction to Sandy Hook tragedy
More than 60% of AEC professionals surveyed by BD+C said their firms experienced heightened interest in security measures from school districts they worked with.
| Nov 27, 2013
Wonder walls: 13 choices for the building envelope
BD+C editors present a roundup of the latest technologies and applications in exterior wall systems, from a tapered metal wall installation in Oklahoma to a textured precast concrete solution in North Carolina.
| Nov 27, 2013
University reconstruction projects: The 5 keys to success
This AIA CES Discovery course discusses the environmental, economic, and market pressures affecting facility planning for universities and colleges, and outlines current approaches to renovations for critical academic spaces.
| Nov 26, 2013
Construction costs rise for 22nd straight month in November
Construction costs in North America rose for the 22nd consecutive month in November as labor costs continued to increase, amid growing industry concern over the tight availability of skilled workers.
| Nov 19, 2013
Top 10 green building products for 2014
Assa Abloy's power-over-ethernet access-control locks and Schüco's retrofit façade system are among the products to make BuildingGreen Inc.'s annual Top-10 Green Building Products list.
| Nov 15, 2013
Greenbuild 2013 Report - BD+C Exclusive
The BD+C editorial team brings you this special report on the latest green building trends across nine key market sectors.
| Nov 15, 2013
Metal makes its mark on interior spaces
Beyond its long-standing role as a preferred material for a building’s structure and roof, metal is making its mark on interior spaces as well.
| Nov 14, 2013
Behind the build: BD+C's 'Pedia-Pod' modular pediatric patient unit at Greenbuild 2013 [slideshow]
Next week at Greenbuild, BD+C will unveil its demonstration pediatric patient unit, called Pedia-Pod. Here's a behind-the-scenes look at the construction of this unique modular structure.
| Nov 13, 2013
Installed capacity of geothermal heat pumps to grow by 150% by 2020, says study
The worldwide installed capacity of GHP systems will reach 127.4 gigawatts-thermal over the next seven years, growth of nearly 150%, according to a recent report from Navigant Research.
| Nov 11, 2013
The story behind 'Pedia-Pod,' BD+C's modular pediatric patient unit at Greenbuild
In the November issue of BD+C, you'll see our report on "Pedia-Pod," the modular pediatric patient unit we've helped design, outfit, and build at Greenbuild. Here's how it was developed.
