The questions posted on on the display at the Central Library are similar to ones shared on this blog in January. They are:

1. What areas or services in the library seem underutilized when you visit? What areas might need some updating?
2. What can the library do to establish a stronger connection to Boylston Street and Exeter Street?
3. How might the library make the Johnson Building more attractive and inviting?
4. What sorts of enterprise or entrepreneurial opportunities might the library pursue? What sorts of entrepreneurial activities might fit in well in the Johnson Building?

The Johnson Building, which opened in 1972, is the portion of the Central Library in Copley Square that is at the corner of Boylston and Exeter Streets.

Last summer, the library issued a request for proposals for help in exploring ideas on how to improve visitors’ first impression of the Johnson Building, enrich library services and spaces, and generate cost-sharing options and additional revenue.

Preliminary efforts to develop ideas for the Johnson Building began in November 2012 when a community advisory committee was formed and continued into December 2012 when the firm William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc. was selected to lead the master planning process.

Prior to the April 10 program, Boston Public Library will mount a display in the center atrium of the Johnson Building where library users and visitors can review a floor plan of the existing layout of the building and are encouraged to provide comments and suggestions on the project. The display will remain up for the entire month of April.

Background on the Johnson Building Project to date is published throughout this blog. Those not able to attend the April 10 public program or visit the display are welcome to leave a comment on the library’s Compass blog at www.bpl.org/compass or send an email to compass@bpl.org. “Compass” is the name of Boston Public Library’s strategic plan.

Download and share the April 10 program flyer (PDF).

Community Advisory Committee Members

Community Advisory Committee 4-8-13 Agenda (posted April 4)

Additional recommendations include highlighting information about the library’s history and the diverse community of users and neighborhoods it serves. Other suggestions include installation of large monitors and/or digital projection elements to enliven these spaces and provide platforms for display of real-time metrics about library usage and promotion of the library’s extensive digital collections.

Please let us know what you think about these recommendations by commenting on this post, sending an email to compass@bpl.org, or a letter to the BPL via 700 Boylston Street, Boston MA 02116.

Some key components to the successful deployment of this space include:

• Library services in the Johnson Building at a branch scale
• Engaging space with inviting street view
• Bookstore browsing experience
• New books on display, themed displays, popular collections
• New fiction and nonfiction, biographies, large print
• Open, engaging, strong merchandising component, continually refreshed
• Comfortable seating for reading and browsing
• Flexible space for author programming
• Staff and technology to engage readers with reading recommendations
• 3 – 4 public catalogs, 1 small staff workstation

Please let us know what you think about this evolving concept by commenting on this post, sending an email to compass@bpl.org,  a letter to the BPL via 700 Boylston Street, Boston MA 02116.

Library President Amy E. Ryan reviewed the project goals and stated how important it was to have the community involved in helping the library explore options to make recommendations for the FY14 capital planning initiatives.

Architects William Rawn Associates led a discussion about Philip Johnson’s design principles highlighted by a series of quotes from the late architect. The principles, referred to as “Johnsonian Principles” are:

• procession: anticipation – sense of event from exterior
• procession: moment of arrival – coherent experience from front door
• procession: ascent – celebrated vertical circulation
• scale: respect and experimentation
• monumentality in the city – civic urban presence
• structure and rationality – structural clarity in planning

The architects described the structure of the Johnson Building and identified areas where the natural light was best. They also shared images of other interesting libraries from around the world and the community members discussed how the Johnson Building might have a better, more active relationship with Boylston Street.

Library staff reported on the types of services and functions that under consideration for each floor. Many of the ideas and suggestions came from previous Community Advisory Committee meetings as well as input from library staff members. Highlights included an updated lobby as well as a popular browsing area. (Editor’s note: both of these topics will be discussed further in future posts to this blog.)

Community members offered several suggestions and ideas for the project. Members discussed the attractiveness of a dedicated space for casual book discussion, reading recommendations, and small author talks. They also considered options for relocating the children’s and teen areas.

The meeting concluded with a brief enterprise discussion. Boston Public Library has engaged consultants to study the feasibility of commercial enterprise and the viability of a conference center within the library. Committee members emphasized the importance of identifying an enterprise opportunities that are compatible with the library mission. They also discussed maintaining a “porous” environment to integrate the enterprise with library services and to help energize the building. The next Community Advisory Committee meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 13 at 8:30 a.m. The enterprise discussion will continue at that meeting.

Updated: Download the 2-26-2013 Johnson CAC agenda.

• Byrne McKinney & Associates for market research on commercial viability of potential space, should the library decide to include such options in the final plan.
• Pinnacle Consulting, who is assisting Byrne McKinney & Associates, and will be focused on the commercial viability of day conference space, an idea that could include refurbishment of Rabb Lecture Hall and nearby rooms.
• Engineering consulting firm TMP, who are helping to assess the health of Johnson building systems and infrastructure along with the level of difficulty involved in any substantial renovations.

It will be the task of William Rawn Associates to incorporate all of the feedback and analysis into an integrated plan while working with BPL and the city’s Public Facilities Department to narrow the options based on project goals and the library’s mission. The next six months will involve a multi-track process to develop a master plan for those sections of the building in direct project scope and those that involve relocated services.

William Rawn Associates was chosen for their extensive architectural and design experience, knowledge with public library projects in Boston, and their processes around envisioning and stakeholder engagement. Some may recognize the firm as the group that designed the BPL’s Mattapan Branch as well as the new East Boston Branch currently under construction.

Send questions about the Johnson Building project to compass@bpl.org. You are also always welcome to comment directly on this blog or send a letter to the BPL via 700 Boylston Street, Boston MA 02116.

We invite your comments in response to these questions, too. You are welcome to reply to this blog, send an email to compass@bpl.org, or a letter to Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston Street, Boston MA 02116. This link to the Central Library map may be helpful in identifying specific spaces mentioned in the questions here. For previously-published information on the Johnson Building Improvement Project, visit our blog archives.

The next meeting of the Community Advisory Committee for this project is scheduled for Wednesday, March 13, at 8:30 a.m. in the Johnson Building Mezzanine Conference Room.

CAC Meeting: January 10 Discussion Questions

Entry

1. What are the first things you would like to see when you enter the library?
2. How can we transform the lobby arrival experience?

First Floor

1. What could the first floor include for a blend of uses to be a successful attraction to various age groups?
2. If the question is about re-energizing the Johnson building, what are your observations about the first floor? What’s working? Where is there potential for revitalization?

Children’s

1. Where do you see possible locations for the Children’s Library?
2. How do we balance imperatives for security and natural light?

Conference Center

1. What could you envision for components of a conference center and who do you think would use it?
2. How does the absence of natural light in the basement limit its potential?
3. What limitations does the 340 seat count of Rabb put on the conference center concept?

Commercial Uses

1. What types of commercial uses would be most compatible with the library’s vision?
2. What kind of activities would bring the most energy to the ground floor? Commercial? Non-commercial?

Exterior Changes

1. How extensively should exterior changes be pursued?
2. How should we maximize the level of energy on the street/sidewalk?

Deferrari (the open atrium area in the Johnson Building)

1. What might be ways to energize Deferrari Hall? On 1st floor? On 2nd floor?

“Compass” is the name of the Boston Public Library’s strategic plan. Community Gathering is the seventh of eight principles that staff from the BPL have discussed with the public following the unanimous approval of the strategic plan by the BPL Board of Trustees in November 2011. The Boston Public Library engaged its stakeholders in a two-year, three-phase planning process prior to that Board approval. The final Compass principle to be discussed is the User-Centered Institution principle, which will be covered in March 2013.

Download and share the January 30 Roundtable flyer (PDF).

If you are not able to join the January roundtable, you are always welcome to leave a comment on this blog or send an email to compass@bpl.org with your ideas.