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Bohlin Cywinski Jackson

Ballard Library and Neighborhood Service Center

Seattle, Washington

The first major project in a new urban core for the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, the Library and Neighborhood Service Center has become a community icon and an illustration of the benefits of sustainable design combined with extraordinary architecture.

Project Information

SIZE

15,000 square feet library + 3,600 square feet service center

COMPLETED

2001

AWARDS

National Honor Award for Design

Green GOOD DESIGN Award

Top Ten Green Projects

PRESS

Lessons from the Leading Edge

Following Ballard’s master plan, the library and neighborhood center present a powerful civic face along a major pedestrian corridor. The building’s extended front porch, a sheltered gathering place, leads toward the center one block away. Sitting between Main Street and the residential neighborhood, it has a transparency that provides a sense of intimacy within the community.

The design subtly reflects the area’s Scandinavian and maritime roots. Tapered steel columns, standing like masts, support a lilting roof that extends beyond the entrance and unites the library and service center components. The building’s glass skin lets in natural light and bends around the corners, marking the children’s area and service center lobby as special places. A periscope, integrated into a wall by the circulation desk, offers patrons views of the green roof. Data about wind, energy usage and rainfall is displayed on LED panels as artwork, making microclimatic conditions created by the building visible.