Minutes 05-13-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

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specific programs and activities desired. She said there was also a focus on how the community feels about the Brewer Lane site. She reviewed several graphic illustration slides. She said the community showed overwhelming support for a centrally located library with easy public access. She said respondents wanted to be able to walk, bike, or bus, and the location was considered unique because it allows for connection to other activities and businesses. She said there were questions raised about whether there would be enough parking and how the traffic would be handled. She said there were also questions about the visibility of the library, given where it sits on the property. Katherine Taylor said the desired activities and services included the following: children's space, meeting/gathering spaces, books, technology, and technology training, creative spaces, display/exhibit space, and music space. She said there was a heavy focus on the desire for creative gathering spaces and children's spaces that encourage interaction and learning. She said the need for teen activities also came up repeatedly, as well as outdoor spaces and musical spaces. She said the middle school respondents wanted space for hanging out, gaming, and interacting with technology. She talked about the difference between a community library, branch library, and main library. She said the trend is to go away from the term "branch library," and to use the term community or neighborhood library, which puts the focus on the community it is serving. She said there are standard services that are offered, but there is other programming that is unique to the area. She said this community is different due to the diverse areas, such as Carrboro and Bingham Township. Katherine Taylor said the information was used to develop a conceptual program. She said this will give a square footage amount, chunks of space, and program allocations for each of those spaces. She said this starts with community size and population demographics, along with the public comments and feedback. She said the current recommendation, based on the feedback received, is a range of 15,600 to 18,500 useable square footage, which equates to 19,500 to 23,000 gross square footage. She said the majority of this space is allocated to traditional program space; gathering spaces come in at 15 percent; "marketplace" comes in at 12 percent; creation spaces are 10 percent; and 10 percent are non-public spaces. Katherine Taylor said the "marketplace" space is the main entry or hub where everything happens, and this can include a check in area, cafes, and gallery space. She said this is typically a very flexible space. She said the traditional space includes the adult, teen and children's space, including collections, seating, computers, study space, group space, interactive learning space, and gathering spaces. She said the creation spaces include training classes, and multipurpose labs. She said this library is unique due to its ability to house a "floating" collection, as well as its ability to house a teen collection, and children's learning and discovery space. She said this differs from a main library, as the main library should house the majority of the collections and be focused on administration. She said the Orange County and Chapel Hill libraries provide this traditional focus. Katherine Taylor said this library is also very unique due to its site location and its close proximity to the Chapel Hill Main Library. She said this allows for the ability to share physical resources, as well as e-content. She said this also allows the smaller community library to offer unique services.