San Pablo Library
The San Pablo Library is a story of transformation and rebirth. Located at the crossroads of San Pablo, the Library occupies a formerly abandoned Walgreens. Pulled back from the street edge, its windowless shell sat directly across from the historic City Hall. Through community outreach and planning, the design team revitalized this dilapidated structure into a modern, 21st century library. The program reflects the community’s desire to create a walkable downtown and co-locates the library with a small community market and community event space. This reconceptualization of the library as a community anchor is further augmented through two new plazas, created by removing old parking spaces.
Within the library, the space is transformed through selective demolition of the exterior shell (both walls and roof) to create a series of integrated lanterns. These lanterns create space for plantings adjacent to the primary reading and collaboration spaces, foregrounding the natural landscape of Wildcat Creek while providing spatial relief to the previously blank retail box. Spaced evenly across the length of the library, the lantern-integrated skylights provide even illumination throughout the day.
Programmatically, the interior spatial arrangement utilizes a marketplace of new materials and amenities to provide an intuitive, flowing transition from age-specific (children’s, teen) to intergenerational (meeting and community room) spaces. This organization allows for flexible use of the space throughout the day, maximizing the current and future use of the limited square footage of the original structure.
As described above, the project utilized a sensitive approach to the existing shell to maximize daylight and views while minimizing energy usage in order to achieve LEED Silver certification.