Bayley Construction has started work on the expansion of The Seattle Public Library’s Lake City Branch, 12501 28th Ave. N.E. The larger branch will better serve the community.
The contractor, which began work March 18, has fenced the site, completed hazardous materials abatement work and demolition and has started excavation.
The expansion of the Lake City Branch is part of the Lake City Civic Core project, which also includes a relocated 4,994-square-foot neighborhood service center, improvements to the Albert Davis Park, and a 62-car underground parking garage topped by a public plaza. The Lake City Branch will grow from 9,013 square feet to 15,300 square feet.
The branch project will feature an updated collection of books and materials, more seats, a meeting room, and upgraded technology. The existing branch was built in 1965 and has been named a landmark building by Seattle’s Landmarks Preservation Board.
The expanded branch is projected to open in mid-2005 after the equipment, books and materials are moved back into the building.
Designers at ARC Architects designed the branch expansion to create a civic presence for the expanded branch and neighborhood service center, preserving the entrance courtyard and its bronze gates designed by renowned Seattle artist and sculptor George Tsutakawa. Hewitt Architects designed the parking garage, plaza and the park improvements. Images of the design for the branch and neighborhood service center may be viewed at http://www.spl.org/lfa/neighborhoodlibs/lakecity/lcydesigns.html.
The building also will include artwork by artists Linda Haworth and Jane Grafton, who are creating glass walls that will embody cast-glass objects that represent the theme “Collections.” The Library’s public art program is managed by the Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs.
The $3,788,201 branch expansion project is part of the $196.4 million “Libraries for All” bond measure that Seattle voters passed 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. The $72 million Seattle Center/Community Centers levy that Seattle voters passed in 1999 will fund the neighborhood service center.
To date, the Library has completed the Capitol Hill, Delridge, Green Lake, NewHolly, Rainier Beach, Wallingford and West Seattle branches. The new Central Library will open at 11 a.m. Sunday, May 23. Branch openings scheduled include: the new High Point Branch at noon Saturday, June 19; the expanded North East Branch at noon Saturday, June 26; and the new Beacon Hill Branch at noon Saturday, July 10.
The Ballard, Columbia, Fremont, Greenwood, and Lake City branches are currently in the construction phase and planning and design is under way for many other branches.
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: 4 May 2004
12/30/2005
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