Public Libraries: New $65 Million, 138,000-Square-Foot Slover Library Opens in Downtown Norfolk, Virginia
The new Slover Library opened today (Friday, January 9, 2014) in Norfolk, VA.
From The Virginian-Pilot:
[Hundreds gathered] in the 138,000-square-foot facility to help usher in a new era for the city. The $65 million library at 235 E. Plume St. includes a 3-D printer, 130 computers, a digital media lab, free Wi-Fi, video gaming lounge and large touch-screens that can be used to search historic photos.
It also houses the Sargeant Memorial Collection, documents and photographs used for historical and genealogical research.
There’s a bistro [it seats 52] and meeting space, comfy chairs and nooks for studying.
And, of course, there are books – more than 160,000 of them – along with other items that can be borrowed. The shelves even have digital displays to access the library catalog and visitors’ accounts.
[Clip]
More than 150 students from the city’s public schools toured the library while adults scrolled through photos on touch screens.
Parents oversaw their children climbing and crawling through openings on a padded gym on the second floor.
Read the Complete Article, View Pictures
Video From The Virginian-Pilot
Two Video Reports From WKTR
From Inside Biz (via Facebook)
From the Slover Library Foundation
Slover Library encompasses three buildings with 138,000 square feet of combined space: the renovated historic Seaboard building, a retrofitted Selden Arcade, and a modern new six-story addition that connects the Seaboard and the Selden with a three-story glass atrium and tower featuring custom ornamentation by sculptor/architect Kent Bloomer.
The library was designed by Newman Architects, of New Haven, CT, in association with Tymoff+Moss, of Norfolk, VA.
Filed under: Libraries, Public Libraries, Reports, School Libraries
About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.