Santa Monica College Library
Santa Monica, Calif.
Anshen+Allen Los Angeles

Anshen+Allen Los Angeles renovates and expands an outdated library, doubling space and creating a campus social center

© Tom Bonner

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By Morris Newman

For decades, the Santa Monica College Library seemed like a missed opportunity. Though sited on the main pedestrian mall, the massive, windowless concrete structure took little advantage of its strategic position to create a social center on campus. After a recent renovation and expansion by Anshen+Allen Los Angeles, the 1970s building has been reconfigured as an inviting information center and student gathering place. While the size of the facility has doubled, it has been seismically strengthened after damage suffered in the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Newly centralized, upgraded electronic systems and learning centers are now showcase elements of the college’s information technology master plan.

The existing library was dark, noisy, outdated for computer use, and far too small for the 28,000 students enrolled in this two-year community college. Overcrowding got worse because the building was one of the few places on the 23-acre campus where students could meet to collaborate on projects.

To open up the building, the architects added a new glass wing, maximizing daylighting while providing sun control. To accommodate the need for computer-based library research, the architects devised an islandlike building-within-the-building that concentrates cabling and mechanical services beneath a raised floor. And drawing on the the library’s setting as a popular gathering hub, the architects went beyond the technical requirements of the interior program to enhance the social quality of the entrance with outdoor seating and a heightened presence on the mall.

Although the existing library was undistinguished, project architect Paul Zajfen decided not to greatly alter the facade of the 48,000-square-foot structure. A canopy was added above the entrance to aid wayfinding. A four-posterlike cage structure outlines the “front porch,” provides overhead lighting, and partially masks the front elevation.

The new addition is a largely glass structure that opens the library to the mall, allowing passersby to see inside and casting a glow from within at night. Initially, the addition was conceived as a glass box attached to the concrete mass. Requirements for shear walls and the need to screen the interiors from sunlight led to changes in the original design. The west elevation became a poured-in-place-concrete wall with minimal punched windows that protect the building from the afternoon sun. Embracing a strategy of passive sun control, the front elevation is now shaded by external louvers. The south elevation is protected with three fixed vertical louvers that are two stories in height and made of extruded aluminum channels.

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Formal name of Project:
Santa Monica College Library

Location:
Santa Monica, Calif.

Gross square footage:
54,000 gsf – Renovation; 41,000 gsf - Expansion

Total construction cost:
$21.9 Million

Owner:
Santa Monica Community College District

Architect:
Anshen+Allen Los Angeles
5055 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 900
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Tel (323) 525-0500
Fax (323) 525-0955
www.anshen.com