AUSTIN | Main Public Library | 123 FEET | 6 FLOORS | COMPLETE
 

http://impactnews.com/central-austin...entral-library

They're building a library for 100 years yet crowing about a parking garage that's going to make it irredeemably suburban, hard to access by transit, and much more expensive.

Yay?

I'm willing to bet that cars will still be here in 100 years. I'll have my kids kids kids pick up the money on anyone wanting to take that bet. I don't see why this location is any worse/better as far as transit goes, transit can change routes. I think the location is an excellent location being very central to other things besides the library - I can envision it being a nice place to meet and being a focal point for the community. That is if there is anyone left that can actually read.

putting the cart before the horse? So they shouldn't build a parking garage? that's a little off kilter. Maybe in a 100 year we'll all have jetpacks and won't need them, but you're going to need a parking garage to meet everyone's needs now. unless you don't want anyone to use the library?

Cars weren't here 100 years ago (well, they weren't typical); and, no, it's not as easy as "transit can change routes". I went into it in more detail on the crackplog a couple years ago here and earlier here

I'd advocate bring back a Dillo to establish a dedicated circulator that ran up and down Guadalupe and Lavaca. This would fit the no turn requirement your crackplog suggests and would drop people off 3 blocks from the library and pretty much anything else in downtown/UT area, and probably increase ridership to boot - I submit the primary reason people who own cars don't take bus who might otherwise is because convenience issues - long waits and instincts which tell them any given route is unpredictable.

Transfers kill ridership too. The old library is right on a handful of long-distance routes and 2-3 blocks off pretty much all the rest of the major routes. A ton of people can get to it without a transfer (and they do; hang out there some morning and watch people get off the bus and go in the building).

I wonder how many of those people are work at home people who are establishing an office at the library? I've heard reports of this.

Relatively few. Stereotyping, it's more elderly and lower-income folks that I saw get off the bus there. (I've taken the bus there myself before, and am now using a walker, so there you go).

Austin's new central library to go beyond just books
 

http://www.statesman.com/multimedia/...y_1256117c.jpg

ohn Gillum started working for the Austin Public Library system in 1979, the year what's now the John Henry Faulk Central Library opened.

At the time, the city was less the half its current size. The library system used computers to manage its circulation, but personal computers weren't considered an essential service, so libraries weren't designed or wired to accommodate them. Internet access was first provided in 1995.

Much has changed in the past 32 years, and now Gillum is helping plan and build the City of Austin what he said he hopes will be the most advanced library in the U.S. The city's "library of the future" will provide the same information and community services that residents need from traditional libraries, with a focus on innovation and flexibility, he said.

"We realize we're going out on a limb," Gillum said. "We want to do our best job, and that means we do everything we can to prepare for change. We're trying to future-proof it."

That means shelves will be on casters, so that any space can be transformed as needed, Gillum said. Displays will draw visitors to new materials, including books and magazines, as well as digital media. The library will have meeting rooms and amphitheaters to host community gatherings.

The $120 million facility will be built using bonds initially approved in 2006 and will open on Halloween 2015, if all goes according to plan, Gillum said. The 200,000-square-foot library will be a few blocks west of City Hall and will serve as the hub for the Austin system's nearly two-dozen branches.

http://www.statesman.com/news/local/...t-2058739.html

I wouldn't expect the new library will last 100 years, the last central library didn't last 25 years before it was obsolete. Technology will always be improving.

My question is, what are the plans for the old central library?

I think I read somewhere that they plan on using the old library for expansion of the Austin History archives and museum.

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/ne...contracts.html

http://www.statesman.com/news/news/l...entral-/nSNnd/

120M smackeroos and probably the premier block in Austin. Good thing we're not investing in something as obsolete as lending library in the era of iPads. Oh...wait...

Also, could Austin squeeze another mid rise building into downtown?

What was wrong with 8th and Guadalupe? Too convenient?

Actually, 8th & Guadalupe is horrible and anything but convenient. The Faulk Library is running out of space. It's not easy to get to as a pedestrian (Guadalupe sucks) and is a pain to get to on bicycle, again, Guadalupe, and that huge hill on 8th Street. And gasp, dare I say it? It has pretty much no parking. I know parking is a bad word in downtown, but this library serves people from areas outside of downtown. Moving the library to Cesar Chavez will help with that, not just for the increased parking, but for the better access. Cesar Chavez connects to both Mopac and I-35. Also the downtown residential concentration is going to be around the new location.

Yup! This is a perfect spot in my opinion, especially once all the development is finished. It's also gonna be extra special to be on the waterfront, that way when you are in the Library you'll have an awesome view.

It's a trophy, plain and simple, I'd love to see that money spent somewhere else. How about towards the light rail, or for a museum? Oh well, it still will be cool I just don't understand how this has taken soooo long to start after it was approved in a bond years ago, what could they possibly still need to do? And yet a whole more year before construction will even begin.

Is it too late for them to change their mind on spending 120 million storing paper books? With every passing day this thing looks like a bigger and bigger joke. If they are smart they will design the space to easily be converted to office or museum space.... because that is what it is going to be in 10-20 years.

I think the amount approved was $90 million but the cost was still $120 million so they still needed to find the other $30 million to get started. That is why it took longer. To find all the money.

There is a lot more to a library than just storing paper books. Especially in todays digital world.