The modernization and expansion of a mid-century library redefines its engagement of the community and anchors the area’s first civic plaza.
SAN LORENZO LIBRARY
San Lorenzo, CA
The San Lorenzo Library modernizes and nearly doubles the size of a 1960s era library serving unincorporated Alameda County. The addition echoes the original reading room’s open, light-filled, architectonic design, while infusing project with robust new spaces supporting its community-spanning mission.
A generous “front porch” formed by a dramatic butterfly roof overhang reverses the introverted precursor’s orientation. Since the library’s opening, the porch alone has become a local landmark, hosting everything from food truck picnics to bike clinics, and promising many imaginative opportunities to come.
The new layout places staff desks at the middle of a bow tie-shaped floor plan, permitting sight lines to all spaces from one location, and allowing the doubled-in-size facility to operate with the same sized staff.
The project was developed in coordination with extensive public feedback, and weaves San Lorenzo’s cultural and built history into a destination that celebrates the area’s unique identity. Since opening this project has become a model for future facility improvements within the Alameda County Library system.
Stats
- Client: Alameda County Library
- Design team: Group 4; murakami/Nelson Architectural Corporation
- Scope: Modernization and expansion; urban infill
- Status: Complete
- Photography: Technical Imagery Studio
Awards
- Citation – AIA San Mateo
- Citation – AIA East Bay
- LEED-NC Silver
