Libraries have long been designed around books, often neglecting the human experience. Just think about it—books, and other items of age, need dark, cool environments, but people thrive in light.
Texas’s Austin Central Library—opened in October 2017—is redefining public library design and green libraries in general. While books are, of course, still an emphasis, the building’s designers also focused on people. The 198,000-square-foot facility—a joint venture between Lake|Flato and Shepley Bulfinch—strives to be the most daylit public library in the US.
Austin Central Library is literally shaped by light. At its core is a six-story atrium, which provides daylight to more than 80% of the library’s regularly occupied spaces. “The presence of daylight makes people feel happy and more productive. It makes people want to be there,” says David Lake, principal in charge for Lake|Flato.
And people do want to be there. The library sees an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 people a day on the weekends and 5,000 a day during the week—that’s more than five times the visitors the old library had, Lake says.
Maximizing Rays
Photo courtesy of Lake|Flato
Before breaking ground on the building—adjacent to Shoal Creek and Lady Bird Lake—architects made models to see how light would enter the space. “We took the models outside and tried all different configurations. We wanted to harvest the light evenly around the building without glare but still have a library that could be flexible in the future,” Lake says. “It was our biggest challenge.”
Once the building’s shape was determined, architects had to make sure the walls, stairs, elevators, and ceilings each played a role in bouncing light. White, perforated metal panels were used to harvest daylight and improve perceived brightness.
“The more light we could get from natural sources, the less we had to rely on electrical lighting systems,” says Jim Chambers, project manager at Shepley Bulfinch. “Lighting is really important in a library. People need to be able to read and navigate, and we didn’t want to have to rely too much on electricity between the stacks.”
Visitors who want to enjoy daylight and fresh air at the same time can also relax on one of the library’s screened-in reading porches or in the rooftop butterfly garden.
“You can hang out over the lake as a citizen overlooking nature,” Lake says. The solar arrays that sit over the rooftop garden both shade and cool the upper area and provide electricity for the library. The three arrays—567 solar panels with a total of 180 kilowatts—help the building use half the electricity of a typical library.
Transforming a Community
Photo courtesy of Lake|Flato
Photo courtesy of Lake|Flato
