Turner Memorial Library Addition and Renovations
Design Challenge:
Presque Isle is a small city in the very northern part of the State. With 9,300 residents, it has had more than its share of bad luck. The local Air Force base closed down and the potato industry was collapsing. A 2011 addition to their library gave them more space and an elevator, but it was cold and unwelcoming. The exterior was clad with metallic grey panels and the interior floors were covered with grey carpet, reflecting the mood of the city. Entering the front door, patrons couldn’t their way to find the main circulation desk. After navigating a barrage of signs, the only choices were to take the elevator or the fire stair to the second floor.
Presque Isle needed something to lift their spirits. The library had the potential to become a much more important center for the community. Working with a modest $90/SF budget, we developed a strategy that would transform the experience of entering and moving through the library from a “sign-driven” experience to an intuitive, welcoming experience that would help bring the community together.
Design Solution:
A small addition was designed to create a suitable entrance to the library. Filled with daylight and natural wood, the pavilion’s curving stair leads visitors to the main circulation desk on the second floor. The interior functions were reorganized to make it easier for limited staff to oversee the many library activities. Program areas were zoned from “active/social” spaces near the entrances to “quiet/study” spaces in the more remote parts of the library. Young Adults, previously on the third floor and not visible to full-time staff, was relocated to the second floor, adjacent to the main circulation desk and café.
New materials were used to create a comfortable community setting and sense of warmth: wood ceiling panels, circulation desks, and shelving, slate floor tiles and treads in the entry hall, and polycarbonate panels on the stairs and guardrails. Ice white walls were painted a warmer tone of white, steel gray carpets were replaced with green/blue carpets, and highlight colors were used to evoke the memory of the surrounding landscape in the summer. Fluorescent strip lights were replaced with warm LED pendant fixtures. Three WPA paintings called “The Potato Growers” were restored for the living room to celebrate the history of the region.
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