October 4, 2024
The Board of Trustees of the Glencoe Public Library invites residents of the community to a public forum on its plans to renovate the library building. The forum will be held in the library’s Johnson Room on Monday, October 14, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Questions will be welcomed.
Speakers will include a trustee of the board and representatives from the Chicago architectural firm of Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM), which the board has engaged for a master space planning project. SOM was brought on board in April and tasked with creating a coherent vision for addressing known building issues and for the eventual renovation of the library’s interior spaces, grounds, and infrastructure. The master space plan is to be completed by the end of 2024. Incorporating community input, it will prioritize improvements while being sensitive to the historical integrity of the structure and its context within the village. Sustainability will also be a consideration.
The library board selected SOM for its comprehensive services and its interest in bringing a valued public space in line with current and future needs. The firm has designed several libraries, including Chicago’s Chinatown Public Library, the Billie Jean King Main Library in Long Beach, California, and the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University.
“In the board’s 2023 strategic planning process, we learned that Glencoe wants to retain the library’s warm and welcoming character, particularly the beautiful façade on Park Avenue and the vaulted ceiling in the Johnson Room,” said Roger Parfitt, president of the Glencoe Public Library’s Board of Trustees. “Yet residents also want a more modern, comfortable building that meets current needs, including more meeting rooms, an enhanced capacity for community events, better climate control, improved accessibility, better use of the lower level and of our great location on Wyman Green, and necessary updates to the aging building’s mechanical systems.”
“Before the SOM team finalizes their ideas, we need to hear from Glencoe residents. Come join us on October 14, listen to SOM’s suggestions, and provide us with your feedback for a wonderful new version of our library,” he said.
Situated in the heart of downtown Glencoe, the library was built in 1941. Over the years, it has seen several renovations to keep pace with changes in patron use, technology, and emerging service patterns and needs. The last major renovation, completed in 2001, added about 20% more space and featured a new preschool area on the second floor, the Young Adult/Media Room on the main floor, and the Friends of the Glencoe Public Library’s used book room on the lower level.
The program will be recorded and made available through the library’s YouTube channel a day or so after the event.