HORIZONTV FEATURING BD+C: WATCH EPISODES ON DEMAND AT HORIZONTV

𝕏

Currently Reading

First look: Austin breaks ground on 'light-filled' Central Library

First look: Austin breaks ground on 'light-filled' Central Library

Design scheme by Lake|Flato and Shepley Bulfinch incorporates reading "porches" and a light-filled, six-story atrium.

By BD+C Editors | June 7, 2013

Continue Reading

The city of Austin, Texas, last week broke ground on its new Central Library, establishing a major civic presence and community gathering space in the heart of the city’s redeveloped Seaholm district. The library, which is scheduled for completion in 2016, is designed by the architectural joint venture of Lake|Flato and Shepley Bulfinch.

The building is defined by a light-filled, six-story atrium space wrapped by collections and event space. Distinctive elements include a series of reading porches that overlook Shoal Creek and Lady Bird Lake, a quiet reading room, café, and Recycled Reads bookstore. Special areas that support the city’s emerging culture and arts scene include a 350-seat special events center.

The library is targeting a minimum of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification. Its sustainable strategies include a major photovoltaic panel array, which will generate electrical power for the building; a rainwater harvesting system that will provide water for landscape irrigation and restroom plumbing fixtures; and a landscaped roof.

The facility supports alternative transportation, with charging stations for electric cars; a 150-bike corral, and direct links to the multi-use paths that run along the water.

The 198,000 square foot facility will replace the city’s 1979 Faulk Central Library.

Tags

Related Stories

| Nov 8, 2011

$11 million business incubator Florida Innovation Hub at the University of Florida completed by Charles Perry Partners, Inc.

The facility houses the UF Office of Technology Licensing, UF Tech Connect, other entities, and more than 30 startup technology tenants.

| Nov 8, 2011

Designer joins Holabird & Root

Clifton has been awarded numerous awards throughout her career, including two AIA Chicago Design Excellence Awards.

| Nov 4, 2011

Mortenson Construction builds its fifth wind facility In Illinois

Shady Oaks Wind Farm is under construction near Compton, Ill.

| Nov 4, 2011

CSI and ICC Evaluation Service agree to reference GreenFormat in ICC-ES Environmental Reports?

ICC-ES currently references CSI's MasterFormat and other formats in all of its evaluation reports. The MOU will add GreenFormat references.

| Nov 4, 2011

McCarthy completes construction of South Region High School No. 2 in Los Angeles

Despite rain delays and scope changes, the $96.7 million high school was completed nearly two-months ahead of schedule.

| Nov 4, 2011

Two Thornton Tomasetti projects win NCSEA’s 2011 Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards

Altra Sede Regione Lombardia and Bank of Oklahoma Center both recognized.

| Nov 3, 2011

GREC Architects announces opening of the Westin Abu Dhabi Golf Resort and Spa

The hotel was designed by GREC and an international team of consultants to enhance the offerings of the Abu Dhabi Golf Club without imposing upon the dramatic landscapes of the elite golf course.

| Nov 3, 2011

Hardin Construction tops out Orlando Embassy Suites

The project began in April 2011 and is expected to open in fall 2012.

| Nov 3, 2011

2012 Pritzker Architecture Prize Ceremony to be held in China

The tradition of moving the event to world sites of architectural significance was established to emphasize that the prize is international, the laureates having been chosen from 16 different nations to date.

| Nov 3, 2011

DMR Architects welcomes two new staff members

Siro Gonzalez joins the staff as junior graduate architect and Megan Byers joins the staff as marketing assistant.

Top Articles

MFPRO+ New Projects

BIG’s One High Line finally reaches completion in New York City’s West Chelsea neighborhood

Urban Planning

Bridging the gap: How early architect involvement can revolutionize a city’s capital improvement plans

Building Enclosure Systems

Winners of Building Envelope Innovation Prize focus on secondary glazing

More In Category

MFPRO+ New Projects

BIG’s One High Line finally reaches completion in New York City’s West Chelsea neighborhood

One High Line, a luxury residential project spanning a full city block in New York’s West Chelsea neighborhood, reached completion this summer following years of delays related to investor lawsuits.

Urban Planning

Bridging the gap: How early architect involvement can revolutionize a city’s capital improvement plans

Capital Improvement Plans (CIPs) typically span three to five years and outline future city projects and their costs. While they set the stage, the design and construction of these projects often extend beyond the CIP window, leading to a disconnect between the initial budget and evolving project scope. This can result in financial shortfalls, forcing cities to cut back on critical project features.

MFPRO+ New Projects

Luxury waterfront tower in Brooklyn features East River and Manhattan skyline views

Leasing recently began for The Dupont, a 41-story luxury rental property along the Brooklyn, N.Y., waterfront. Located within the 22-acre Greenpoint Landing, where it overlooks the newly constructed Newtown Barge Park, the high-rise features East River and Manhattan skyline views along with 20,000 sf of indoor and outdoor communal space.

Libraries

Reasons to reinvent the Midcentury academic library

DLR Group's Interior Design Leader Gretchen Holy, Assoc. IIDA, shares the idea that a designer's responsibility to embrace a library’s history, respect its past, and create an environment that will serve student populations for the next 100 years.

Most Popular Content