Location: Silver Spring, MD
This new, multi-use facility houses a 63,000-SF library and 20,000 SF of arts space that is constructed over a new light rail station. It is the centerpiece of a new county complex in Silver Spring that will also contain 145 housing units. The new library is a civic beacon and has a glass exterior allowing views both in and out of the facility. The facility is LEED Gold®.
A distinguishing fact about the library is the building earned two LEED pilot credits:
Walkable Project Sites’ promotes walking, biking and other non-motorized transportation that results in reduced vehicle traffic, increased public health and enhanced community participation. The building features a pedestrian plaza and a continuous sidewalk, enhanced by trees, that connects building entrances along multiple streets. The majority of the building façade is glass, allowing pedestrians a view inside and encouraging visitors to enter.
Design for Active Occupants’ promotes improved health of building users through physical activity, while reducing environmental impacts. All levels of the Silver Spring Library building are connected by open ‘monumental’ stairs that are easily visible from both the building interior and exterior.
This project was awarded the 2016 Montgomery County Design Excellence Award.
