Downtown Library to be demolished and replaced

[wolverine]

http://blog.mlive.com/annarbornews/2008/09...down_ann_a.html

It's an ugly building in my opinion, but the article states other important reasons. It should be interesting to see what the new building will look like.

They've been quite demo happy in this part of town knocking down the uglies (the YMCA). Unfortunately we got a parking lot....for now....

[Eridony]

I agree it's ugly. Hopefully you guys will get a nice replacement. I remember when I visited this summer I liked so many of the buildings in the city, but two I didn't care for were the city hall and the library. I was then told they both had the same architect. I like the quote in the article from the guy opposed to the project:

"It always gets back to the taxpayers, doesn't it?" he said. He said he'd just been reading in the second floor newspapers about government bailouts for financial institutions. "When does the taxpayer say, 'Enough is enough!'"

[mgman]

I agree it's ugly. Hopefully you guys will get a nice replacement. I remember when I visited this summer I liked so many of the buildings in the city, but two I didn't care for were the city hall and the library. I was then told they both had the same architect. I like the quote in the article from the guy opposed to the project:

Sure it gets back to the taxpayer, that's how public buildings are typically paid for, but there is a big difference between building something that will be an asset to the local community and multi-billion dollar bailouts of private companies.

Here is a picture of the library from this summer:

larger sizes can be found here

[Eridony]

This is the plan I think they should do, why not build the new library next to the transit center where now we have a nice new city surface lot. Than once the new building is finished, they can knock down the old library, build the underground public garage and eventually sell that space for a private development. Than way the library can stay open for the years of the construction, and a new development will actually be built at that intersection. If I am not mistaken, the lot is not much smaller than the current library.

[cnordstrom]

I'm pretty optimistic that they'll do this "right". The Ann Arbor area has some truly outstanding libraries. The local branches are much nicer than many of the ones I saw in Chicago! Hopefully the trend will continue with the downtown branch. It is, and should continue to be, the flagship of the library system. I can't wait to see some renderings on the revisions!

As for locating to a new space, I'm a bit ambivalent. You guys make some excellent points, but I wonder about the ability to fit in all of the items they want (e.g. the new auditorium) in even a "slightly" smaller space. I'd rather seem them build in place and put together the building they want, than settle for something that will feel outdated in just a few years.

[mgman]

I'm pretty optimistic that they'll do this "right". The Ann Arbor area has some truly outstanding libraries. The local branches are much nicer than many of the ones I saw in Chicago! Hopefully the trend will continue with the downtown branch. It is, and should continue to be, the flagship of the library system. I can't wait to see some renderings on the revisions!

As for locating to a new space, I'm a bit ambivalent. You guys make some excellent points, but I wonder about the ability to fit in all of the items they want (e.g. the new auditorium) in even a "slightly" smaller space. I'd rather seem them build in place and put together the building they want, than settle for something that will feel outdated in just a few years.

[wolverine]

I'm surprised how much effort Ann Arbor put into making that parking lot look all fancy. I'll admit it's beautifully landscaped, has nice wayfinding signage and trees. I really wish they would invest more into improving existing parking areas as opposed to one that will likely be built on within a few years. But since it's so close to Main St, I suppose presentation means a lot.

[Aaron]

The new library plans have been shelved.