Acoustical problems are severe in the center of the building due to noise from escalators, elevators, computers and printers. The Library floor plan, with the circulation core in the center, precludes efficient arrangement of collections and services. The parking and loading area is too small for numerous delivery trucks to turn easily, and is frequently congested.

Public areas throughout the floors of the library are congested due to the high densities of stack and seating configurations. Patrons lack clear orientation to the services of the library and its arrangement of holdings. Open shelves are consistently loaded with materials beyond acceptable levels, causing tangible limitations to reshelving functions and the ability to rationally organize materials on the shelves. More than two-thirds of the library collection is in stack areas closed to the public or in a remote storage facility, requiring staff to retrieve these materials for patrons when requested.

Patron seating areas are congested. Most tables and carrels sit in exposed settings where patrons are distracted by noise and movement. Staff work areas are severely undersized for the functions and volume of work to be performed. There is no public parking available on site, and nearby public garages, which provide expensive short term parking, often fill up during weekdays.

New Space Requirements

A space needs assessment was initially completed in 1991 and updated in 1996/97 to identify space required both to alleviate current overcrowded conditions and to provide sufficient growth space for 30 years. The assessment and the subsequent building program call for a library facility of 355,000 square and public parking to accommodate 200 cars. This will provide a 60 percent increase in usable square feet for library functions, and a reasonable response to public demand for on-site parking for improved accessibility.

The sizing parameters were based on population projections; space requirements for the Library's print collections, which are expected to continue growing but at a slower pace; and the rapidly increasing space needs for computer work stations, group learning, and personal study.

Space needs for the main circulating book collection are projected to grow about 2.4 percent per year, with little or no growth for reference, periodical, and documents collection, which will be increasingly available in electronic form. Space is needed for the equivalent of 1.6 million volumes, compared to 1 million volumes in the current collection.

Seating requirements were based on a formula of 3 seats for every 1,000 residents projected in the Library's service area by 2025. The projected service population used was 850,000, assuming both Seattle residents and a portion of regional population would continue to define the service area. A total public seating capacity need of 2,500 was therefore projected, compared to a current capacity of 800, including meeting room and auditorium seating and computer access stations.

Building Program

The program was developed over one year with library building consultants working closely with Library Administration and 15 staff user groups. It calls for a 355,000-square-foot facility and 200-car underground parking garage with the following features:

• Children's and Young Adult centers providing collection, seating, and program space attractive and welcoming to young people and their parents;
• Technology Learning Center including a Discovery and Exploration Center for introducing new technologies, classrooms for group instruction, and exhibit space for new materials and programs;
• Readers' Forum with the Library's entire fiction collection, a new book browsing area, and a comfortable reading area with a variety of seating options;
• General Information and Periodicals Department, including reference collections, with a high concentration of computer work stations, table and carrel seating;
• Main Collection and Subject Reference Departments that include: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion, Social Sciences, Languages, and Literacy Services; Business, Science, and Technology; Government Publications and Law; Arts and Literature; History, Genealogy, Geography, and Biography;
• Collection Services Area for non-public staff activities related to the acquisition, cataloguing, preservation, and processing of the Library system's book and materials collections;
• Library Orientation and Borrower Services area containing main check out/check in desks, a computerized and staffed information center to welcome and assist visitors;
• A meeting room/auditorium complex with 275-seat auditorium, gallery and exhibit space, and smaller conference and small group meeting rooms;
• Operations Area for non-public materials handling and distribution for the Library System, shipping and receiving, central sorting of materials being returned, building management and custodial/ maintenance service;
• Administrative Offices for the Library System

The program also calls for flexible building-wide communications systems; fully adaptable floor areas, systems and materials ensuring long term operational sustainability; systems and materials ensuring efficient maintenance; compact shelving for collection growth; maximum efficiency of public service points; user- friendly layout; access and signage; environmentally-sustainable design and materials, and a computerized building management system that ensures maximum efficiency in distribution of energy throughout the building.

The following cost estimates are based on a detailed pre-design functional building program and assumes a mid-construction date of 2002:

Sources and Uses of Capital Funds: