Study Completed 2020
44,150 square feet
Renovation and Addition

Oudens Ello Architecture was hired to conduct a concept study for the renovation and expansion of the Concord Public Library, building on the recommendations of a 2007 Needs Assessment Report. Based on our evaluation of the existing building, it is our strong recommendation that the 1965 addition should be demolished in its entirety, the 1940 building should be extensively renovated, and a new addition should be constructed to the rear. Having ruled out vertical expansion based on an initial review of the existing structure, we propose a two-story rear addition—organized around a central reading garden space—that occupies the western half of the site and plugs into the back of the 1940 building. It is our intent that the exterior of the 1940 building be maintained, with the addition treated as a recessive rear wing. The existing library entrance from Green Street is maintained as the primary entrance with a secondary entrance proposed on Prince Street, both arriving at a centrally located circulation desk in the newly renovated lobby, providing maximum visual supervision by staff. A new elevator is located in a more central location directly opposite the circulation desk. The addition houses a new children’s wing, easily accessible from the new entrance, and a new 120-seat meeting room. The addition is designed with maximum flexibility in mind, providing a way to secure the library while maintaining off-hours access by way of the Prince Street entry to the meeting room, lobby, break-out space, central garden space, and public restrooms. The original building's second floor program is reorganized around a newly opened, skylit central atrium space.