CASE STUDY:

SEATTLE CENTRAL LIBRARY

Seattle, Washington
 The Library Revolution

The iconic Seattle Central Library, principally designed The 362,987-square-foot, state-of-the-art 11-story facility houses 1.4 million volumes of books
by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and Joshua Ramus and is consistently referred to as an inspiring, innovative and futuristic space that redefined the
from OMA in a joint venture with LMN Architects of function of a modern public
Seattle, celebrates its 10th anniversary in May, 2014.
The building was truly designed to for the library patron of the 21st century, providing access to
not only books, but to over 400 computers, several community gathering places, special children’s
areas, meeting rooms and a cafe. Over the last ten years, the library has served as an example for
other public libraries across the country - demonstrating how they too can make the transition
from passive service providers to active and vital forces in their community.
 Lighting the Way for Sustainable Design in Seattle
“Light is very important in Seattle. The use of light was actually a critical factor in
We wanted to create as much every aspect of the library’s design, not just a
ambient light as possible, sustainable element. From the exterior maze of
as well as one unending visual windows that wraps the entire building, to the
interior 11-floor atrium and polycarbonate ceiling
space stretched across 11 stories.”
that help to distribute light, to the glass walls that
Pragnesh Parikh divide the sides of the spiral stacks, every detail
-Managing Architect, LMN Architect was considered in maximizing the natural light.
In keeping with this principal design concept,
The Seattle Central Library not only changed the design team didn’t want the book stacks
the way patrons use their public library, to create a visual barrier, so they chose a
but it was also used as an instrument of translucent acrylic material for the top and
creating environmental awareness. The end panels of the shelving. Engineers at
building received Leadership in Energy Spacesaver tested different acrylic materials
and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver for scratch resistance, durability and strength.
Certification from the U.S. Green Building The engineering team also sourced unique,
Council (USGBC) in 2005, becoming one of stainless steel pins that were used to off-set the
the 50 first buildings in the nation to receive a panels from the shelving frames and designed
Silver rating. special lighting brackets for a custom overhead
Many strategies were implemented during lighting solution. All shelving units were
the design process to achieve this certification, also seismically reinforced with gussets and
from using recycled materials, to constructing additional welded spreaders to assure code
the library near access to public transportation, compliance and safety.
to ensuring that 90 percent of all regularly “Developing the acrylic panels was a challenge,”
occupied spaces have access to daylight and said Parikh. “Spacesaver stood behind us with
views. engineering support to achieve our goals.”
 Non-fiction books are held on
four non-disrupted levels

A New Way of Delivering Books

Seattle Public Library's “Book Spiral”

GE NE AL OG Y

“As in any library, the central focus is The collection spirals up through the
the books and the shelving that they four stories on a continuous series of 80 0
99 9

sit on,” said Parikh. “We wanted to shelves, outfitted with the acrylic end 79 9

create a unique experience for the panels that allow light to flow freely
74 7
visitor with the foremost feature of the through the space. 74 6
building being the public spiral book 30 4
In addition to the conventional 30 3
stack, which is one continuous ramp.”
bookshelves with acrylic end panels
00 1
The majority of the library's nonfiction that are found throughout most of
M AG AZ INE S
collection is housed in this four-level the library and in the spiral stack area, CU RR EN T BO UN D
MA GA ZIN ES
book spiral. The aisles have a gradual several high-density mobile shelving NE WS PA PE RS
GO VT
upward slope of about 2 degrees, systems were installed in non-public DO CS
creating a continuous ramp designed areas for infrequently accessed
to display the library's nonfiction material, like books, periodicals, and
collection without breaking up the even personnel records in locked
Dewey Decimal System classification drawers.
onto different floors or sections.
Four of the mobile systems are These high-density mobile shelving
electrically powered and open and systems provided double the
close with a simple push of a button. capacity of traditional shelving
These units sit on the 6th, 7th, 8th systems, and helped the library
and 9th floors, all situated directly bring everything back to one
over top of each other. They vary location. Prior to construction of
slightly in size but in general are the Central Library, a large portion
about 30’ in length with between 20 of the collection was located in a
and 32 mobile carriages. building a few miles away from the
library and was mostly unavailable
A fifth system is a Mechanical Assist
to the public. If there was a book
Spacesaver system, operated by a
or document that a patron wanted
hand crank, and is located behind
to view they would have to put in a
the children’s area on the main floor.
special request and the book would
It has 12 carriages and they are 12
then be temporarily transferred to
feet in length.
the library for viewing. This transfer
could take several days.
A Gift Shop Unlike any Other

A sixth high-density mobile system

is used in the main lobby of the
library to house a gift shop. OMA’s
Mark Von Hof-Zogrotzki designed
the cabinetry that would be used
and then worked with Spacesaver
to install the cabinets onto mobile
carriages that run on tracks in the
floor. The carriages are carefully
concealed beneath the cabinets,
so all that is seen is the custom
cabinets.
The shop can easily be opened
each day by manually rolling the
custom cabinets along the tracks
in the floor. Once the aisles are
opened, each cabinet can be
plugged into a floor outlet in order
to light merchandise and power
the cash register. Special carriage
rail covers were designed to
provide a convenient, safe public
space. At the end of the day, the
entire shop can be locked into a
tight cube.
 “The Spacesaver team were open to new ideas throughout the project.
When working with designers, it is important to be flexible. Standard
solutions are easy to find, but a modified design approach is critical to
achieving a unique outcome. If everything we did was readily available
in the marketplace, we wouldn’t be designers.”

Pragnesh Parikh
-Managing Architect, LMN Architect

An Authorized Spacesaver Representative in Seattle, worked

with the architectural team as a consultant to help develop
the technical specifications for both the fixed and mobile
shelving used throughout the library. He even took designers
to a local job site to educate them on the benefits of mobile
storage.
Custom elements were incorporated throughout the project,
beyond just the acrylic end panels used on most of the
static shelving. For example, specially designed drawers
were added to the cantilever shelving to accommodate the
library’s existing card catalog.
A secured area called “The Seattle Room,” located on the
10th floor, houses most of the library’s rare books collection.
It is open to the public, however it has limited hours and
library personnel are always present to manage user access.
The Spacesaver shelving in this space was outfitted with clear
acrylic doors that can close and lock to secure the rare books

“
collection, but still allow light to enter the space.
Spacesaver did an
The Seattle Public Library broke the barrier of standards
when it comes to designing a space that is built specifically excellent job at engineering
for the benefit of it’s users for an overall better experience custom solutions. They were
within its walls.
efficient and knowledgeable
and able to provide quick
delivery and installation.
”
-Pragnesh Parikh
-Managing Architect, LMN Architect
Spacesaver Corporation KI
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Fort Atkinson, WI 53538-2798 P.O. Box 8100
1-800-492-3434 Green Bay, WI 54302-8100
www.spacesaver.com 1-800-424-2432
www.ki.com
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