HIGH TECH Computer training lab (l.) and children’s Promethean ActivTable (r.) at Pikes Peak

Library 21c, the Pikes Peak Library District’s (PPLD) latest addition, is a centralized education and experimentation hub. The new two-story Colorado Springs library is the biggest building in the district, the second-largest in Colorado, supporting about 620,000 residents. Last year, the district had 3.6 million ­visitors.

What makes this new library unique is the wide variety of opportunities under the same roof, according to Dee Sabol, PPLD community engagement and outreach officer, and Carolyn Coulter, information technology and virtual services officer. In addition to the collection, the first floor houses a cyberclinic for patron tech support, automated self-check machines, and DVD dispensers; a large children’s section with a new Promethean ActivTable; and meeting and study spaces for teens. Families can also sign up for literacy classes offered by the Family Place Library, a national project focused on early childhood development and family support.

On the second floor, the Creative Computer Commons (C3) offers equipment, technical assistance, and teaching aid. The Center for Public Media expanded the library’s in-house video production center to allow patrons to learn direction, camera operation, sound and lighting, editing, and other skills via state-of-the-art technology, digital AV editing stations, a portable “Story Booth” to record short films, and backpacks of recording equipment for checkout. The two Maker spaces contain building tools and software, 3-D printers, sewing machines, a laser cutter, and other products for high- and low-tech creativity.

A new 400-seat theater for presentations and performances accompanies additional gallery space. A café and a business printing and copying center are run by vendors. The Center for Business and Entrepreneurship facilitates hands-on and online job training sessions via meeting rooms with projectors, smartboards, and teleconferencing equipment.

“Lots of people are doing on-site video production, but they can get certified (in production), and checking out a studio-in-a-box is new,” Coulter says. “Lots of people have computer labs and business support, but a business computer lab is new. Lots of people have reservable meeting rooms and rentable spaces, but having a conference center that can be booked for a whole day at no charge is innovative. Lots of people have a kids’ room and try to get parents involved in planning, but having a whole Family Place Library within a library is new.”

A model to build on

While not every library in Pikes Peak has room to replicate all Library 21c’s offerings, it represents a “new service space paradigm” that will be rolled out to other libraries, Sabol says. Among these, the East and the Penrose libraries will be renovated next year to include technology upgrades and expansions for public space and centers for children’s education, teens, and adult training. Other libraries will be equipped with new Wi-Fi networks and voice-over IP phone systems, too, Coulter says.

The tribuilding project’s projected cost is $13.2 million. About 70 percent will come from the district’s savings and operating budget. The remaining $3.9 million will come from a three-year capital campaign—halfway to its goal—that includes grants and donations from companies, individuals, and foundations.

Planning & partnership

Groundwork began in 2008, says Kathleen Owings, president of the library Board of Trustees, with a patron survey and meetings with stakeholders. The library hired OrangeBoy Inc., of Columbus, OH, to analyze patron demographics and create user personas. Using these, the district developed a plan to reach out to different users, especially young families, military families, and those seeking electronic content. Group 4 Architecture, Research + Planning, of San Francisco, evaluated community growth patterns and library facilities to help the district plan for new services and environments.

The district created a leadership team to manage the project, using a collaborative “integrative building design” method, in which every department had a representative, Coulter says.

The district purchased a former call center a mile and a half from its current 8,700 square foot leased space for $3.75 million, Coulter says. The 112,883 square foot building was in good shape, says Sabol, with scenic views and access via bus and major roads.

GE Johnson Construction Company, of Colorado Springs, and Humphries Poli Architects, of Denver, were selected to work together on the project.

The new library was designed to maximize the use of natural light, Sabol says. Other green design elements include the reuse of carpet scraps for flooring, installation of energy-efficient lighting and heating/air conditioning systems, and reduced landscaping. Groundbreaking began last fall, and the new building opened June 21.

Michelle Lee is a new librarian with an MLIS from Pratt Institute