The recently completed Norwell Public Library is situated on a large, heavily wooded, wetland property, remote from the town?s commercial and civic centers. Unlike its urban and suburban counterparts which respond to their respective fabric, this building lacks the context of nearby buildings, but the natural beauty of the site provides ample inspiration for an appropriate architectural response. As public libraries are transforming from centers of information into centers of culture, this building was designed to be an accessible, approachable, and welcoming center of community life, engagement, enjoyment, and enrichment.
© Chuck Choi
The single-story building?s three wings ? adult, children, and community ? organized around a central courtyard garden were designed to maximize natural light and views and to facilitate patron wayfinding and staff supervision by a general openness. The change in scale from the intimate courtyard and modest height lobby to the generous reading rooms, gesturing outwards to the site, creates an intentionally delayed enjoyment of views to the vast surrounding woods. © Chuck Choi
Designed with flexibility in mind, one wing of the building is accessible for after-hours community use while the rest of the library is secured. An emergency generator provides partial power allowing the library to serve as a cooling/warming center for the community during outages. The exposed mass timber structure, comprised of glulam beams and columns and timber r...