Customer convenience has been a primary design objective. Taking a useful cue from the private sector, the library will enable customers to check out their own materials. They will be able to enjoy greater privacy while avoiding lines at service desks. And in the process, the library will be able to redirect staff resources to spend more time helping customers one-on-one with their information needs and searches. The familiar information and circulation desks will be gone, replaced by a single "Help Desk."
The commitment to customer convenience also led to the addition of a drive-up window. By calling ahead, customers will be able to pick up library materials from their cars.
No design detail was overlooked, even in staff work areas. The planning group worked on how to use furniture to encourage collaboration while defining individual work space. The staff workroom will be arranged to accommodate teamwork. Similarly, there will also be group study rooms for public use.
The planning group worked with an image of having a children's area so naturally inviting that children would pull their parents into the story area. The scale of the furnishings in the children's area will be for the youngest customers, those only two and three feet tall.
A special panel of adolescents helped develop the design for the "teen zone." They asked for their own area in the library where teens feel acknowledged, welcomed and accepted.
Responding to further public direction, access to electronic information sources has been balanced with an ongoing commitment to books. Customers expect to find a strong print collection as well as abundant computer work stations. The new library will open with 25 stations and a flexible design so that additional stations can be added, if needed later.
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