George Town Library Community Design Meeting 5-22-2008

COMMUNITY DESIGN MEETING SUMMARY & COMPILATION OF PUBLIC COMMENTS Meeting Date:

Thursday, May 22, 2008 6:00-8:00 PM

Location:

Saint John’s Episcopal Church Georgetown Parish 3240 O Street, NW Washington, DC 20007

Meeting Purpose:

Public meeting to provide the community with an opportunity to help shape the renovation of the Georgetown Neighborhood Library. A brief overview presentation was given at 6:00 pm and following this, staff was available to discuss the project and answer questions. Comments were collected by comment card and given verbally during the meeting.

Meeting Format:

Presentation and interactive workshop format. ƒ The presentation included an overview of project implementation and a discussion of design options ƒ A facilitated discussion allowed participants to provide comments and ask questions of District Library staff and the project team.

Attendees:

Thirty-nine community members added their names to the sign-in sheets. Ginnie Cooper, Archie Williams, Jeff Bonvechio, Kim Fuller, Barbara Norland, Elissa Miller Chris Wright, Martha Saccocio and the Georgetown Interim Library staff represented the DC Public Library. John Hill represented the DC Library Board of Trustees. The following members of the CirclePoint consulting team attended the meeting: W. Steve Lee.

Community Design Meeting – May 22, 2008 Summary of Public Comments

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SUMMARY OF COMMENT CARD COMMENTS What design elements would you like to see in the interior of your neighborhood library (i.e. lighting, seating, workstations, amenities, etc)? • Would like to have accessibility to the stacks. • Natural light to the lower level • The plan showed stairs but did not show them going up to the Peabody Room. • Would like to see lots of light. The proposed monumental staircase is a great idea. • Would like the interior kept the same. • Need windows that will allow decent natural light. • Restrooms should be easily accessible. • Preserve same wooden and sturdy chairs. • The library interior should have more modern furniture. • Keep the interior friendly for young and older children. • For adults, emphasize large tables and use lounge chairs sparingly. • Most important issue is the hours of operation for the library, not the interior of the library. • Need wall space for art exhibits from our local schools. • I would prefer that the stairs take up less space in the main hall so that more space along the south wall could be usable. • Suggest returning to the asymmetry of the stairway arrangement of the old building – perhaps a long straight stair along the east wall of the main space which could be an eye-catching design element but also less of a space hog. What design elements would you like to see on the exterior of your neighborhood library (i.e. signage, landscaping, entryway, walkway, etc)? • I agree 100% with what was presented tonight. • Keep it as faithful to the original design as possible. • Book return box that does not require one to legally park and go up two set of stairs to drop off books. Install the drop off box closer to the street so patrons can simply “pause” and drop off. • Excessive ramps on the exterior of the library are clunky. • The library needs to be well integrated with Book Hill Park. This will require careful design of the parking lot. • Effective use of the proposed reading terrace which will have great views. • Since books and magazines are not read outside, I do not care what is outside the library. • The library exterior needs more plants. • Don’t overdo it. Keep it simple. • The exterior of the library needs to be complementary to Book Hill Park. • Make the R Street, NW entrance more appealing, perhaps by adding a feature between the two doorways.

Community Design Meeting – May 22, 2008 Summary of Public Comments

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Describe your comfort level with the design direction presented this evening: • The presentation by both the design team and the Chief Librarian where excellent. • So far, so good. • So, so • Spectacular. I am very excited. For instance, the Peabody Room space which would be a great improvement over the old one, plus a wonderful use of that vast space under the trusses. • The monumental staircase would be very useful for highlighting the ground and 2nd floors which were so hidden by the old design. • It’s a great idea not to use the fire exits as the main way up and down. • As was with the District Department of Transportation Meeting regarding the Georgetown Transportation Study, this meeting also involved an overly detailed presentation. A 3-D model would have been more effective for illustration purposes as opposed to a PowerPoint. • I liked this evening’s presentation. • Very good presentation • I felt the designer was not really open to changing the aspects of the design that the community was concerned about. Only one scheme was presented and it was problematic in its central concept of the connecting central stair and also unimaginative. However, I appreciate the desire to keep the building intact for speed of building approvals. Other • Thank you for keeping us informed. • Keep up the excellent planning. • The separate entrance for the meeting room would make an enormous difference as ANC meetings always go past 10 pm. • Please work with the Book Hill Park people on the children’s terrace to be sure they endorse it before the proposal goes to the ANC. I know that the terrace is not in Book Hill Park, but the terrace is in an area quite connected to that park. • Need easier access to the restrooms. • The plan did not show the stairs going up to the Peabody Room. • Would like to see a picture gallery showcasing photos of the old Georgetown public library. • I love the children’s reading courtyard and the adults’ reading patio and would like to suggest that the adult patio be open for reading -- possibly to connect to the periodicals area.

Community Design Meeting – May 22, 2008 Summary of Public Comments

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