It took nearly two decades, but a design-build team finally broke ground last month on a new branch of the public library system for the city of San Diego.
The 14,376-sf Mission Hills-Hillcrest Harley & Bessie Knox Public Library—named after the city’s former mayor and his wife, whose family is one of the new library’s donors—will be nearly four times larger than the 3,850-sf, 56-year-old branch it replaces.
The Craftsman-style, single-story facility, designed under the direction of Manuel Oncina Architects (which has worked on nine libraries for San Diego County since 1995) and Ferguson Pape Baldwin Architects, will include a study space, a computer lab, a meeting room for community events, and children’s and teens rooms.
The children’s area will recall the Hobbit houses seen in the “Lord of the Rings” movies, but with trellises that are wired for Internet connectivity.
“In general, libraries have morphed over the years,” says Andy Feth, project manager for C.W. Driver Companies, which is providing construction management and design-build services for this project. “They’ve become community gathering places.”
Feth tells BD+C that the community played a big role during the design process, which began 18 months ago. One of the community’s concerns was that the library would have adequate parking, which is scarce in San Diego. The new library will sit atop a 30,000-sf, garage, two stories below grade, with 85 parking spaces, or 76 more than the older facility.
This $17.9 million project had been put on hold for years because of the city’s financial shortfalls. It finally moved forward after the Knox and Hervey families each donated $5 million, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. City infrastructure bond funds contributed $10 million, and the rest came from other private donors, which is earmarked for more books, computers, 3D printers and other technologies.
Feth says the library—which is being built on the site of the old International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers building—is targeting LEED Gold certification, and will include energy efficient LED lighting and natural daylight streaming through clerestory windows in a 25-ft-high ceiling in the middle of the building.
The new library is scheduled for completion October 2018, which means it might open by Christmas of that year, he says.
Related Stories
Libraries | Jan 12, 2023
An adjacent community center enhances South Bend’s library
This $40 million renovation and addition are part of a larger urban revitalization scheme.
Libraries | Oct 25, 2022
Stanford’s renovated library wing syncs with the region’s tech industry
Collaborative space replaces stacks.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2022
Top 90 Construction Management Firms for 2022
CBRE, Alfa Tech, Jacobs, and Hill International head the rankings of the nation's largest construction management (as agent) and program/project management firms for nonresidential and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 19, 2022
2022 Giants 400 Report: Tracking the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms
Now 46 years running, Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report rankings the largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. This year a record 519 AEC firms participated in BD+C's Giants 400 report. The final report includes more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Cultural Facilities | Aug 5, 2022
A time and a place: Telling American stories through architecture
As the United States enters the year 2026, it will commence celebrating a cycle of Sestercentennials, or 250th anniversaries, of historic and cultural events across the land.
Libraries | Jul 20, 2022
Canada to open one of the world’s largest library and archive facilities
When it opens in 2026, Ādisōke is expected to be one of the largest library and archive facilities in the world.
Libraries | Jul 5, 2022
Libraries, despite digital disruption, remain community assets
Washington D.C. is executing a master plan to build local facilities that can adapt to changing technologies.
Libraries | Jun 21, 2022
Kingston, Ontario, library branch renovation cuts energy use to 55% of benchmark
A recent renovation of the Kingston (Ontario) Frontenac Public Library Central Branch greatly boosted energy and water efficiency while making the facility healthier and safer.
Libraries | Jun 8, 2022
Welcome to the hybrid library
Libraries have grown to become the intellectual and social hubs of campus, where, prior to March 2020, students, researchers, and faculty gathered to collaborate and connect.
K-12 Schools | Mar 8, 2022
Design delivers new media messages for schools
Media centers are no longer physically confined to one room.