Charge for the Space Planning Teams

The Teams are charged to recommend a design plan for the respective area, which encompasses the needs of users, collections, services, that is modular in terms of what can be accomplished in the short term, and what our longer term goals are for the library. Teams are expected to communicate with each other to elicit comment or advice, as needed. [This is important in the CPNM charge to deal with Union Catalogs, which also pertains to the work of the Reference Team]. Teams should prepare written reports for the SSHL Management Team, which will review the documentation, propose next steps, and continue to work with the Teams, as needed.

User-centered space planning is a fundamental guiding principle. The approach should be a mix of adequate space for the collections, acknowledgement that collections may shrink or expand depending on format, and surge space for students, both for study space and computing space. Understanding who our users are and what they are doing can and should be a critical component of your investigations.

The Team may need to conduct interviews or focus groups with users and potential users about their work, their use of information, and their information needs. Teams are charged to recommend a redesign of the specific space to provide access to the collections and growth space for the users.

Some specific issues, areas or collections to consider:

CPNM:

Union catalogs

Microformat collections

Weeding of micro collection when electronic equivalents are available

Movement of micro collections from the reference area

Weeding of newspapers

Low shelving for visibility and future flexibility

IP collection

Movement of printed newspaper indexes from Ref collection to CPNM

Seating for patrons

Overall layout/appearance to create a more friendly “Library As Place” environment

The creation of a bound journal room (is this still needed or not even a possibility?)

Potential for internet café space

Information Desk area:

Demand for more workstations

Smaller workstation footprint (to allow for expansion of more workstations)

Electrical considerations

Networked printing

Self-service check out stations

Possible consideration of being more in sight of Reference Desk

Reference area:

Ongoing weeding projects and impact on space (with consideration for the preliminary planning for the Maps move)

Consolidation of collections

Reduction in number of distinct Reference locations (and location codes in Roger)

Reference Desk location in relation to high demand services and patron flow

Maps collection move

Government Information depository plans

Demand for more and different computing options and services, including networked printing, wireless devices, electrical considerations, delivery of CD-ROM products, etc.

Demand for more student study space

Exhibit space

Note: West Wing Space Planning Project

The West Wing Space Planning Project was carried out over a several-month planning period in 2000/2001. The initial project was to address the issue of multiple service points in the Arts libraries. The goal was to consolidate the existing four service points into one service desk, in order to provide one-stop shopping for patrons. The project grew from that small issue of consolidation of service desks to a larger project that encompassed rearranging and moving the collections, allowing for the development of new services, and creating new uses for the existing space, mainly with the addition of Systems Department staff space to an adjacent SED staff space. New services such as group study rooms, small and large viewing rooms, more user seats, and more user workstations that would allow patron access to audio and visual materials in digital format from any workstation, were also included in the final plan.

The result of the West Wing Space Planning project revealed a $15M price tag and no prospective donor to pay for the project on the horizon. Library Administration has decided to move ahead in smaller steps and to spread the project out over several years within current budget restraints. The first step was to move government documents to compact shelving. The second step is to consolidate the map collection into a space half its current size and move the collection to the second floor of the west wing. Within SSHL we have been asked to begin the process of identifying how to consolidate the map collection into a smaller space using digitization to reduce the physical size of the collection. Elizabeth and Larry are currently working on that part of the project and will coordinate with the Reference area team to ensure that all needs are met.