NEW TECUMSETH LIBRARY – FACADE
At the request of the Alliston Business Improvement Association (ABIA), we were asked to provide a design proposal to improve on the rather dreary and uninspired main entrance facade of the New Tecumseth Library, Alliston branch.
Forecourt
As the library itself is slightly indented from its neighbouring buildings (east & west), the opportunity to develop a forecourt presented itself. With that, a series of key design strategies were implemented, which would give the forecourt better functionality and more importantly, some much needed main street presence. As such, we proposed covering the ground plane with “salt & pepper” white granite pavers, that would stretch from library to roadside curb, and between both flanking buildings, thereby defining the library’s entry precinct – its forecourt.
The forecourt is further defined through the introduction of a new concrete architectural “frame”, which extends across the library wall, becoming the building’s “sign band” and then turning 90° to extend out towards the street (east side). By extending this frame out and adding a black steel planter box with vine-covered stainless steel rods beneath it, an architectural “screen” is created, hiding the neighbour’s unsightly gas regulator and roof ladder (east), while further defining the forecourt.
The three existing trees (Honey Locust), which march along at the sidewalk’s edge, were provided with new stainless steel tree grates, linking them into the forecourt’s paving pattern dimensions. These same tree grates have a pinwheel pattern, expressive of movement: a nod to the daily pedestrian traffic which traverses quickly past.
Placed within this open forecourt is a black steel plate square bench and planter box, filled with easy-to-maintain groundcover foliage, offering those outside the library a pleasant place of repose.
Facade
To bestow some grandeur and presence to the New Tecumseth Library – a small one-storey building – a giant lightweight cornice was added above the new architectural frame. Constructed of curved open web steel joists, which are anchored to the library’s roof and clad in white perforated metal, the cornice dramatically soars high overhead and overhangs the forecourt below. With southern sunlight coming from the rear of the library, the cornice shade becomes backlit, filling the forecourt with a soft, dappled light. On hot summer days, the forecourt’s outside temperature is reduced, while remaining sunny, enticing those walking past to stop, rest and enjoy its cooler temperature.
The new facade of the library, which primarily takes place below the architectural frame, is clad in vertical panels of white Carrara marble, a material used worldwide for cladding important public buildings. As such, the marble’s white shade differentiates it from the predominantly red brick context of the street, thereby elevating the library’s presence and public status within the town.
From the forecourt vantage point, the library’s main entrance is made abundantly clear, as a large opening has been punched through the white Carrara marble facade. With doors and windows made from Spanish cedar, the entrance is both open and inviting, while being perfectly scaled to a small-town context. Complementing the facade’s entrance composition and lending interest to the forecourt itself are five square windows, which appear to rise in random fashion. Also made from Spanish cedar, these windows can be interpreted as the “transformative” moment when one becomes so lost in a good book that time and place seem to magically disappear.
When viewed from across the street, the library’s new white facade and forecourt immediately stands out from its brick neighbours (east & west), clearly identifying it as an important public building. Looking a little closer at the library’s new architecture, its shapes come into play, as the facade metaphorically resembles the white pages of a book, opened and rotated 90°: a new book to explore for the New Tecumseth Library.
LOCATION: New Tecumseth (Alliston), Ontario
ARCHITECT: LINEVISION Architects
DESIGN LEADERSHIP: Michael Poitras,
Principal-in-Charge of Design
CLIENT: Alliston Business Improvement Association (ABIA)
MATERIALS:
- White Carrara marble
- Perforated metal (white)
- Poured in-place architectural concrete
- Spanish cedar wood windows & doors
- Steel plate planter boxes (black)
- Stainless steel bar tree grates (pinwheel pattern)
- Granite pavers (white salt & pepper)
- Outdoor landscaping
GENERAL PROGRAM:
- New library facade
- New library forecourt
COST: Withheld
COMPLETION: Project