A Palm Beach Post article about a proposal for a new library building – with six floors of condos on top of it.
Some say they wouldn’t mind such a hybrid. Others derisively call it a “librando.”
Warren Schwartz, an architect in Boston who has won awards for library design, said there’s an entirely new way of thinking. Libraries no longer are considered just quiet monumental places to curl up with a book.
“Librarians want to turn libraries back into kinds of city rooms, places where people will go to hang out with their friends,” he said.
That could mean new architecture stunning in its own right, he said.
Diantha Schull, executive director of Libraries for the Future, a New York-based nonprofit organization devoted to improving the country’s libraries, said that, as libraries become more dynamic, they become more democratic.
“I think that even as we see libraries becoming gateways to information, we also see them more important as public spaces,” she said.
Compare to Mon’s Libraries need to mind their Biz
They wear “No Shhh” pins in Salt Lake’s library/public radio station/deli/gift shop/comic-book store/garden shop.
I’m sure gate counts are up, but does someone who stops by the library to pick up a sandwhich and some potting soil really count as a library user?
After reading this, I agree more and more with Monday’s anti-book displays article.
What is the purpose of funding a public library, anyway?
And, the business interests will ensure that the homeless people who read out loud will be removed from the library in short order.
On the other hand, if libraries would partner with hardcore sex shows, at least it would free up some of the research terminals.
Miami Dade
The South Shore branch of the Miami Dade Public Library System is moving into a condo in December.
Re:Compare to Mon’s Libraries need to mind their B
I dunno, most of Chicago’s neighborhood libraries are on the first floor of three-flat or six-flat apartment buildings, and some are in strip malls. If you insist the library be separated from other institutions in the community, what do you expect to gain…?
Sure, there will be issues to work out, like the business people kicking out “less desirable” people, but I’m sure librarians will continue to fight those battles as they arise. We’ll win some, we’ll lose some, and we’ll keep on adapting as times change.
Re:Compare to Mon’s Libraries need to mind their B
Actually, mixed use buildings don’t bother me. And libraries in strip malls are fine. What bothers me is libraries that have pizza delivery service because that is what the public wants.
That is (I assume!) an exaggeration, but I do often hear adding a giftshop/deli/rollercoaster is a good idea, because the public wants these things. Yet, you don’t see police stations adding giftshops and delis. Why do libraries? What does a giftshop have to do with library service or the mission?
And if the giftshop sells books, that raises a whole new host of questions.
LIbrary Turkeys
I’ve always thought a bowling alley would be a nice service for a library.
Perhaps Brunswick and Ebsco developing a “noiseless” ball.
Pins painted as adorable little spinsters with the top part serving as the obligatory bun.
A giant electronic scoreboard directly above the Circulation Desk simultaneously flashing the latest patron scores and a current list of delinquent patrons.
“Strike Out For Reading Scoring System”
* X X X = “You Keep the Book”
* X X / = “Bonus Month on Renewal”
* X / / = “Eat/Drink What You Want, We Won’t
Harass”
* / / / – “Free Back Massage While Surfing the Net”
Re:Compare to Mon’s Libraries need to mind their B
Our giftshop raises money for the Friends, so they can fund programs and purchase library materials. Plus it’s a great place to buy book-related chatchkies.