Reading Room
An innovative, multifaceted system in Adams County’s new Anythink Library District represents a radical departure from traditional libraries. Gone are the checkout counters, Dewey Decimal System, metal shelving—even the stern front-desk librarians.
Anythink evolved by recognizing the ways people learn and access information in the 21st century. Modern information processing is far less linear and more multimedia based and interactive than ever. It engages users visually, aurally and physically.
The architecture, layout and built environment at Anythink libraries demonstrate these profound changes. Where conventional libraries focus on book checkout, Anythink patrons interact with information through a variety of IT-based media in addition to print. Librarians, liberated from their traditional checkout stations, circulate through the library helping patrons locate information.
Green Twins
If the Anythink system of seven libraries (four brand new, three remodeled/expanded) constitutes a family, then two of those—Wright Farms and Huron Street—are the twins, sharing common attributes such as reflective thermoplastic polyolefin roofs, sloped gently toward the south and configured for full photovoltaic systems; energy-efficient raised floors above air plenums; and ample crawl spaces. Advanced energy-saving systems make all seven libraries highly sustainable.
To mitigate the effects of swelling clays, library foundations consist of caissons to bedrock— roughly 20 ft to 25 ft deep at Wright Farms—and poured-in-place stem walls. Metal joists support the main floor, which is poured concrete on metal decking.
Structural CMU and steel-frame walls are covered with James Hardy fiber-cement lap siding and panels paired with architectural metal panels, lap siding and architectural metal panels. Ground-face, smooth-face and split-face blocks have been combined to create accent bands and other decorative features.
North-facing glazing consists of a series of vertical rectangular panes below a continuous band of 24-in.-high clerestory windows.
“At 4.5 ft high, the crawl space was dug deeper than the plans called for to accommodate MEP workers but required pumps to deal with flooding after some exceptionally heavy spring rains,” says Josh Davis, project manager for general contractor Fransen Pittman of Denver. “Flooding was the only real obstacle we faced over the course of the project. We inadvertently created a bathtub that required considerable dewatering.”
Feeder MEP lines to individual rooms and work stations are run through 14-in. air plenums from MEP trunk lines installed in the crawl space. The rooftop mechanical plant is hidden from view by projecting exterior walls. Access to utility lines and junction boxes through carpeted floor panels that are easily removed makes workspaces flexible and easy to reconfigure.
Flagship Features
At 45,000 sq ft, Wright Farms is the district’s flagship headquarters and by far its largest library (Huron Street is next at 25,000 sq ft). It boasts a function-based design emphasizing flex space, group-activity rooms, quiet-study rooms, reading areas, computer labs, game rooms, Wii stations and dedicated sections for adults, children and teens. Twenty of the library’s 68 computers are located in a computer lab, where a variety of classes are offered.
Beetle-kill pine ceilings laced with purple highlights range from 22 ft to 25 ft tall with full-height window walls on the south overlooking a 1.5-acre public park and a fenced patio that shares a double-sided fireplace with an indoor reading space.
“Wright Farms is the most voluminous and spacious library I have ever been in,” Davis says.
Wood shelving made by local craftsmen reinforces the warm bookstore-like ambiance and helps define different functional spaces. Books are organized by topic just like a neighborhood bookstore.
“Way finding is simple and intuitive, the design contemporary, and the ambiance warm and inviting,” says Anythink Director Pam Smith. “There’s a wonderful connection to the outdoors both here and at Huron Street, which intersects a bike and walking path.”
Window walls and other glazing provide an abundance of daylighting while photosensitive cells automatically brighten interior spaces on rare overcast days. On the east side, the 6,000-sq-ft administrative wing—an elongated rectangle oriented north south—opens on a semicircular driveway shaded by an expansive portico.
The administrative wing houses offices and conference rooms for both the district and library. The interior is finished with a dropped ceiling and standard 8-ft walls.
A tree-lined drive from 120th Avenue provides vehicle access to the portico and a 120-space parking lot immediately to the east.
“The 9-acre site (including the park) was originally part of Wright Farms, an HOA in unincorporated Adams County at 120th Avenue and Holly Street, annexed by the city of Thornton,” says Dennis Humphries of Humphries Poli of Denver, the project architect. “The site was too narrow for retail, and homeowners opposed commercial development. Significant funds contributed by the community enabled the district to include a park on the site.”
Wright-Farms finished on time and within budget, as did the other three new libraries. The total project cost was $38 million.
“Construction on Wright-Farms began in June 2009 and finished in July 2010,” says Davis. “LEED-Gold certification is all but certain.”
A full service café is currently under construction and will open in the fall.
Anythink Libraries Break With Tradition
Pam Smith, director of the Rangeview Anythink Library District, says that going from one of the poorest library districts in Colorado to being on the leading edge in just two years is pretty close to a revolution.
The district’s 1970s-vintage buildings, some never designed to be libraries, had not been upgraded for decades and were underutilized. Funding from a $38-million bond issue, grants, private funds and donated land allowed the former Adams County Library District, which was established in 1953, to expand from 34,000 sq ft to 110,000 sq ft and reinvent itself.
Planning started at Humphries Poli Architects in 2004, construction began in 2008 and has already produced four new libraries. Two renovations are in progress, and a third is set to begin shortly.
Each of the new libraries is uniquely suited to its site and community, but all share signature features such as locally crafted wood shelving, beetle-kill pine ceilings, photovoltaic or PV-compatible roofs, sustainable design, double-sided fireplaces, indoor-outdoor reading areas, computer labs and automated book tracking. Radio frequency ID tracks circulation via metal strips inserted into books and other materials—the same system used by bookstores.
Community meeting rooms at each library are accessible from the exterior and available after hours.
The award-winning Bennett Library, located for 30 years in a 2,000-sq-ft temporary building intended to last just 10, is the only non-LEED structure among the four new buildings.
“Foregoing LEED saved an estimated $30,000 to $40,000 on commissioning, consultants and paperwork, which paid for the installation of geothermal power,” says Dennis Humphries, Humphries Poli principal.
The 20,000-sq-ft Brighton Library, relocated from a residential neighborhood to a main street, is destined for LEED Gold.
The library is powered by geothermal and a 110-kW rooftop PV array, financed with a grant from the Governor’s Energy Office. Carbon contribution is back-calculated based on energy-use figures from conventional systems.
Brighton Library and the renovated Armory, where National Guard troops once trained, form the city’s new cultural arts center. The two share meeting rooms, parking and intervening open-air spaces designed for community events.
In Northglenn, the 25,000-sq-ft Huron Street Library, a LEED-Silver building, overlooks Niver Creek from a triangular site donated by the city of Thornton. The library it replaced was originally a post office.
Huron offers expansive teens’ and children’s areas, the latter featuring tree houses fashioned from “abstract” bark-covered panels.
Commerce City and Perl Mac (Federal Heights) libraries, both expanding from 7,000 sq ft to approximately 10,000, include geothermal power sources, roofs designed to accept PV installations and community gardens with related educational programming. Scheduled to open by November, the Commerce City site includes a vaulted ceiling with skylights for daylighting. Perl Mac is expected to open by next spring.
