The Seattle Public Library board of trustees has selected Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss Architects of Seattle to design the renovation of the Magnolia Branch. The Library Board made its unanimous decision at its Sept. 28 meeting.
“Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss Architects has an outstanding technical grasp of what’s needed for the Magnolia Branch, including preserving the original structure with its open floor plan,” said Linda Larson, the Library Board steward for the branch project and a member of a community advisory panel that interviewed three firms for the job.
The Magnolia Branch was designed by architect Paul Hayden Kirk and won national recognition when it opened in 1964. In 2001, Seattle’s Landmarks Preservation Board voted to designate the branch as a landmark building. The Library will work with the landmarks board to preserve the architectural character of the library.
Founded in 1997, Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss Architects has a special interest in the restoration of historic buildings. The firm designed the recent renovations of the historic Green Lake and West Seattle branch libraries. Its principals also have worked on the Burien Library, the King County Library Connection at Southcenter, the Suzzallo Library at the University of Washington, and the Whatcom Museum of History and Art in Bellingham.
Eighteen firms applied to design the renovation. An initial staff review narrowed the list to nine firms. The community advisory panel reviewed those proposals and selected three firms to interview.
Community representatives serving on the advisory panel include Betty Anderson, who has lived in Magnolia for 28 years, and who for many years served as an adviser at the University of Washington Art School, and Julie Ziruolo, who recently moved with her family to Magnolia from West Virginia. Ziruolo has a 9-year-old son and is a former human services worker with Goodwill Industries.
About 50 area residents attended a public reception on Sept. 20 to meet representatives from Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss Architects, along with architects from the two other finalist firms, Miller Hayashi Architects and Weinstein A|U Architects + Urban Designers. The architects displayed samples of their work and answered questions.
The Magnolia Branch will be renovated and possibly expanded. The $875,727 renovation work includes upgrading technology services, equipment and ventilation, improving electrical, communication and computer connections, adding energy-efficient windows and new carpeting, and improving the interior layout.
Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss Architects will first need to assess the feasibility of expanding the 5,904-square-foot building by 1,800 square feet. The $1,624,365 expansion work would be funded through the Opportunity Fund, a special fund created as part of the “Libraries for All” bond measure to be used for new or unanticipated neighborhood library capital needs for underserved areas of Seattle. Voters approved the $196.4 million bond measure in 1998. The bond money, which can be used only for construction of libraries, is funding a new central library and new and improved branches.
To date, the Library has completed the Beacon Hill, Capitol Hill, Columbia, Delridge, Green Lake, High Point, NewHolly, North East, Rainier Beach, Wallingford and West Seattle branches. The new Central Library opened May 23. The Ballard, Fremont, Greenwood, International District/Chinatown and Lake City branches are currently in the construction phase and many other branches are in various stages of planning and design.
The Seattle Public Library Foundation is in the final phase of a “Campaign for Seattle’s Public Libraries” with the goal of raising $82 million from private sources to enhance the public bond commitment. Every dollar raised will ensure a level of excellence in the library’s facilities, collections, and programs that would not be possible through its tax-based support alone.
For more information about “Libraries for All” or the Foundation, visit the Library’s Web site at www.spl.org.
(For more information, call Caroline Young Ullmann, communications assistant, 206-615-1627.)
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Content modified: 01 October 2004
12/30/2005
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