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May 6, 2005
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| The new design uncovered skylights plastered over 25 years ago. (MPR Photo/Art Hughes) |
Minneapolis, Minn. — Since a 1979 remodeling visitors coming to the Franklin Library were greeted at the front entrance by an obtrusive elevator. Project manager Nina Biddle marvels at the result of one of the architects' biggest challenges--moving the elevator to open up the entry.
"In the past you were confronted with a wall when you came in the door," Biddle said. "Now...there's just this beautiful entry with a terrazzo floor and it's just an exceptional entrance when you come in. It's much more welcoming to the community."
The building first opened in 1914. It's known as a "Carnegie Library" because it was part of steel industry magnate Andrew Carnegie's program to fund library construction around the country. It's now one of 14 neighborhood libraries remaining in the city.
The 70s work put energy conservation above ambiance. The dramatic skylights were plastered over. Florescent lights replaced more appealing chandeliers. Those architectural misdeeds were fixed this time around so the library better invokes its own past.
"I think throughout the building you'll see we tried to emphasize the history of the library," Biddle said.
In the days before the reopening, workers remained busy attending to last-minute painting and other details. Even with a room addition the library remains just over 13,000 square feet.
The architects view the building as a beacon in one of the city's most culturally varied landscapes. Principal architect Jeff Scherer with Meyer, Scherer and Rockcastle architects said the design packs a lot into a little space.
"We worked hard at providing lots of different settings so people who are introverts could work and people who are extroverts could work," Scherer said. "People who are shy could feel comfortable here and people who everybody in the community knows because they're active in the community could be comfortable here."
The Franklin Library's proximity to the Phillips neighborhood where many of the state's newest immigrants settle makes it the hub for people learning English or studying for a citizenship exam.
"What's really fascinating to me is nearly a hundred years later the exact same thing is going on," Scherer said. "It's just a different culture has moved in. It's not Polish or German. It's Somali and Hispanic."
The library now has a section designed to hold an American Indian collection and a larger world languages space. There are 40 new computers to update a lower level learning center once slated to close because of budget constraints. Now the room has a luxurious vaulted ceiling. Scherer said the ground level rooms now do a better job of reflecting the original vision of many Carnegie libraries to make use of outside light.
"I mean the daylight in this room. You can imagine being in this room if there were no windows," he said. "It'd be really awful. You can imagine spending a full afternoon here even on a wintery day and having lots of natural light."
The design team used classic materials to create a cozy kiosk of bookshelves in the main room. Project Architect Bill Huntress said the new children's area is both a centerpiece and a refuge for kids.
"We wanted to make it a fun, colorful lively place that would attract people," Huntress said. "We made an effort to add images of different cultures and symbols that hang from the structure and when the light shines on them they really pop and it makes it more colorful and interesting."
Most of the $3.8 million for the project comes from the Central Library referendum. It's money earmarked for community library renovations. Neighborhood residents raised money privately to relocate the library to a building next door so it could remain in use while work continued on the original building.
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