With a ribbon-cutting, the library with a water view opens and the books invite you to curl up in a chair.
By CHRIS TISCH
Published May 2, 2004
[Times photo: Kathleen Flynn]
Anna Wilson, 3, of Indian Rocks Beach, pulls out a few books to read during the Clearwater Main Library's grand opening Saturday. "She likes all kinds of books," said her mother, Thea Wilson. "I don't want her to spend too much time in front of the television. I want her to develop her imagination."
CLEARWATER - Those who planned the new Clearwater library wanted it to be more than a warehouse for books. They envisioned it as the city's living room.
And what a living room it is.
Giant windows on the building's west side offer majestic views of the Intracoastal Waterway. An overhang shields the library's interior - including a spacious cafe - from the sun, allowing visitors to curl up with a book without wearing sunglasses.
On the east side, the building blends in with the more traditional landscape of downtown. The front entrance opens wide to welcome visitors.
The library, which has been under construction since 2002, opened Saturday to a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a throng of visitors who seemed impressed with the building's size and scope.
"This is evidence of the value our citizens place on libraries and culture in our community," Mayor Brian Aungst said.
The $20.2-million library spans 90,000 square feet. It has four floors and a rooftop terrace. About 13,000 square feet of the building is devoted to children, more than four times the size devoted to youth in the old library.
The new library is on the site where Clearwater built its old library in 1916. The city added to the old building three times over the years, but it had become antiquated.
Library director John Szabo said a quarter of the old library could not be reached by the disabled. Another quarter of the 49,000-square-foot building couldn't hold stacks of books. The facility also was difficult to wire to upgrade technology.
In 2002, the library moved into a temporary home across the street, and the old building was demolished. Construction soon began on the new facility, which was designed by renowned architect Robert A.M. Stern, dean of the Yale University School of Architecture.
Stern designed the library to be inviting for people to visit - and to stay. It has an 80-foot-high grand staircase that offers a great view of the water. And the Joffrey's cafe, with a 60-foot-high atrium ceiling, feels much like a bookstore's coffee shop. "I hope the soaring spaces will be seen as a living room for the city," Stern said. "There's a lot of people who don't have a view of the ocean."
Yet, much of the building's design also fastens it to the city's redeveloping downtown. "This library is a first step in making this a destination and a source of pride for Clearwater and the Tampa Bay area," Aungst said.
Szabo, the library director, said the city showed its devotion to library services by keeping the new building on such a prime piece of real estate. "I think it says wonderful things about our city," he said.
Construction took 750 tons of steel, 4,000 cubic yards of concrete, 1,900 light fixtures and 970 pieces of glass. The library also was designed to withstand growth for a half-century. Stern said it could hold double the number of books it does now if needed, though Szabo said he likes having the space to do more than just store books.
The cream-colored building has soft green window frames and deep red pillars. The library has 64 computers, meeting rooms, a children's room, a 300-capacity conference room and a teen room.
The city kicked in $15.2-million of the cost, mostly from Penny for Pinellas funds. The Clearwater Library Foundation's capital campaign also offered $5-million, and has raised $3-million so far.
The foundation is still trying to raise the other $2-million. For gifts of $500 or more, donors can have their names etched on book spines being placed on a special library wall, said Alex Job, the foundation's president.
Indian Rocks Beach resident Thea Wilson said she'll be abandoning the tiny library near her home to take her 3-year-old daughter, Anna, to the new Clearwater library.
"This is going to offer a much wider range of variety for her," Wilson said. "It looks like it's going to offer everything and anything a child would need. It's hard to find a place to take kids where they can just relax and have fun."
Clearwater resident Nikki Kyer thinks she and her three children will use the new library, too, even though it's a few minutes out of the way.
"I like the fact that I can sit down and relax while they're running around," she said.
