Back in May, I signed up for a special treat as part of GiveBIG 2015: a backstage tour of the Seattle Public Library’s Central Branch! The tour was so popular that they needed six sessions to accommodate everyone. When it was my turn, of course I took lots of pictures. So come along with me for a virtual library tour!
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- Here’s our eye-catching modern library from the exterior. It was built in 2004 by architects Rem Koolhaas and Joshua Ramus (originally from the Seattle area).
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- We received these notebooks, designed by a local artist, as a thank-you gift.
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- Inside the lobby, you can see the beginning of the book handling conveyor system. We’ll see more about this in a minute.
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- The lobby’s floor is an art installation inspired by old-fashioned typesetting trays. Several hundred famous first sentences of books are recreated here.
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- The children’s area, off the main lobby, is a colorful and spacious room with games, toys, and cuddly friends, plus some fun artwork.
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- This electronic art installation displays all the titles that are being checked out (with a 30-minute delay). The display rotates from Dewey decimal number to title to keyword description.
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- At the 5th Ave. entrance, you can see models of the library and an informative display.
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- On the upper levels, you can see the tops of the compact shelving units that hold archive materials. They crank open and shut like museum shelves. The Friends of the Library’s gift shop at the 5th Ave. entrance also uses these shelves!
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- At the top of the building, you can look down and see the open map room. Nearby are writers’ workspaces that are assigned for long-term projects.
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- A view from the Atrium, the highest point in the library.
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- Here’s the end of that long conveyor belt!
All returned books come through this central processing system — including books returned to other branches. The books are checked back in via RFID chip technology as they come off the belt (the column to the left). They’re sorted onto the smaller belts and kicked into sorted bins by pop-up levers. The bins have floor panels that slowly lower as the bin fills, so books don’t fall all the way down and risk getting damaged; it also saves the librarians from having to bend over and reach down to the bottom.
From here, books that belong to the Central branch will go onto carts to be reshelved. Books that belong to other branches will be sorted into different bins and delivered by truck to the branches. The system handles about 1,400 items per hour, so it’s always busy.
I hope you enjoyed this photo tour! You can learn more about the building’s design, LEED Silver rating, and the many architectural awards it has received on the library’s website. Next time you’re in downtown Seattle, stop in for a visit — and don’t forget to check out that conveyor belt.
- Spring 2020 Book Preview - May 15, 2020
- Winter 2020 Book Preview - January 1, 2020
- Fall 2019 Book Preview - September 26, 2019
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