YBS: 2008 Butler County Fair
Your Warren community photos
Your Butler community photos
Library designers show interior, exterior finishes
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Representatives from Glaserworks architects presented the material selected for the interior and exterior finishes of the West Chester Library during a meeting of township trustees and members of the Middletown Regional Library Board.
"The building actually has some interesting materials that are tied together," said Glaserworks principal Art Hupp. He presented samples of the man-made stone, brick and glass of various opacity that will be used to create the 50,000 square-foot building's exterior.
Architect's rendering of the West Chester Library. A ground-breaking ceremony for the library is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 11, at the library site. "Stone is an important element, bringing this building up to a civic level," added Hupp. Project architect Mark Thornaur added that the man-made materials, as well as the natural-finish zinc roof, are expected to have life spans exceeding 100 years.
"Part of what makes them last so long is they also have a certain dignity to them," he said. "When they age, they acquire a patina which is somewhat dignified."
The exterior presented at the meeting features a mix of stone and brick structural elements interspaced with expanses of glass designed to reflect the light from the adjacent pond at The Square @ Union Centre, the urban park under construction next to the library site on Centre Pointe Drive.
Thornaur explained that the interior, which will feature neutral colored walls highlighted by bolder colors on acoustic wall tiles.
"It's sort of like artwork being applied throughout the walls," he said.
He added that the interior will include substantial materials, such as glass and a terrazzo floor in the building's central area.
"It has, again, a civic quality," he said.
The few questions raised by the board and trustees centered around the control of light coming through the expansive glass walls.
"What will be done to ensure we don't have an uncomfortable heat buildup?" asked trustee Catherine Stoker.
Thornaur explained that sunlight simulations done for the building show that opaque and translucent glass panels will be able to prevent excessive glare in the building.
A ground-breaking ceremony for the library is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 11, at the library site.
For more information, go to westchesteroh.org
Contact this reporter at (513) 755-5127 or mcunningham@coxohio.com.
