A new Central Library will be a prominent source of pride and inspiration for the citizens of Seattle, functioning as the community and cultural anchor for the city. It will be a special civic place where people from all ages, backgrounds and social strata may come together to share in the democratic act of enjoying free and equal access to information.

Located in the heart of downtown Seattle, this Central Library will alleviate the current overcrowding and provide sufficient growth space for the next 30 years. The building program provides for a 60 percent increase in usable space for library functions. It will allow public access to materials that currently reside in "back stack" areas, and offer on-site parking. It will house much of the Library's expanding print collection and meet increasing needs for computer work stations, group learning and study spaces. It will expand the present seating of 800 chairs to 2,500.

A new Central Library will house the Library system's main collection of books, government publications, periodicals, audiovisual materials and the technology base that is required to access and distribute information held in the physical collection and found on the World Wide Web. This collection will be large and broad-based, with a depth and breadth of materials that cannot be found elsewhere in the community. Expert staff will provide users with assistance in using these print and electronic collections, aiding them in their sense of discovery as they navigate such diverse subject areas as Seattle history, music scores, genealogy, small business, and investment.

The Central Library will additionally provide support functions for the Library's 25 Neighborhood Libraries, four bookmobiles, and the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library. Currently, 300,000 books per year leave the Central Library headed for neighborhood customers alone. Librarians specializing in various subjects regularly relay information via fax and e-mail to their neighborhood customers, allowing them easy access to rare and expensive materials. Indeed, it is estimated that close to one-fourth of the Central Library's present staff and physical infrastructure are designated as support for the neighborhood library system.

The new Central Library will be customer-oriented with a physical layout that is understandable and predictable to all users, and it will be equipped with systems that encourage self-service and independent use. Service desks, photocopiers, specialized subject collections, and book stacks will all be found in the same location on every floor. The facility will have a single entrance with reception and orientation services. Numerous seating options will range from spaces for quiet, casual reading and individual study to group seating, classroom instruction, and auditorium seating. All spaces will be fully adaptable to allow for changing use patterns, growth and efficiencies.

A general information area will provide assistance across an subject areas. Staff in this department will also provide a high volume of information services to the Neighborhood Libraries and remote users via telephones and other electronic technologies. Users will find the major concentration of computer workstations and devices for accessing the Library's online information resources and the Internet in this location.

Most fiction and non-fiction collections in the new Central Library will be arranged in a single sequence, with notable exceptions for law and business materials. Special focus areas will include a technology learning center, a young adult area, business and career materials, literacy and English-as-a-second language resources, multilingual collections and materials in the performing arts, local history and genealogy.

The children's center at the new Central Library will become a destination for families visiting or living in downtown Seattle. This center will continue to function as a resource and story hour venue for many downtown child care centers, a homework center for children who live or whose parents work in downtown Seattle, and as an additional resource for neighborhood children who have read all that their local library has to offer. The center will also maintain its sponsorship of such high profile family programs as Bill Nye, the Science Guy, and the Harlem Globetrotters, as well as tours for local school groups.

Between 6,000 and 8,000 people will use this new Central Library each day in a wide variety of ways. Exciting programs will engage people in public debate and community dialogue. Flexible spaces will allow for creativity, ranging from quiet seclusion for working writers to open spaces for performers and artists. Interesting exhibits will inspire and delight the imagination. Additionally, nonprofit organizations, book clubs, tutoring programs and many others, emphasizing the Library's vital role as a community center win heavily use meeting and conference rooms.