Editing Seattle Central Library (section)

== Design ==
[[File:Rem Koolhaas SCL.jpg|thumb|left|Architect [[Rem Koolhaas]] inspecting a model of the building. [[Joshua Prince-Ramus]] is kneeling.]]
[[File:Seattle Public Library1.jpg|thumb|right|Seattle Central Library interior]]
[[Rem Koolhaas]] and [[Joshua Prince-Ramus]] of the [[Netherlands|Dutch]] firm [[Office for Metropolitan Architecture| Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA)]], working in conjunction with the Seattle firm [[LMN Architects]], served as the building's principal [[architect]]s. Ramus served as the partner in charge. [[Bjarke Ingels]] designed the interior boxes for OMA.<ref name=parker>[http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/09/10/120910fa_fact_parker Ian Parker, "High Rise"], ''The New Yorker'', 10 September 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2012.</ref> OMA was not one of the firms invited to compete for the project. Ramus, formerly a Seattle resident, found out from his mother one day in advance that the library board was inviting interested firms to attend a mandatory public meeting. He flew in, and OMA ended up winning the project.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metalocus.es/en/news/seattle-central-library-oma-most-exciting-new-building |title=Seattle Central Library by OMA. "The Most Exciting New Building" |author=Jose Juan Barba |date=April 23, 2018 |website=Metalocus |access-date=April 17, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.designbuild-network.com/projects/seattle-library/ |title=Seattle Central Library in the USA, Designed by Reb Koolhaus |date=May 19, 2008 |website=Design Build Network |access-date=April 17, 2022}}</ref>

Deborah Jacobs, Chief Librarian in the [[Seattle Public Library]] system, spearheaded the project from the library's perspective and served as the primary client voice, while Betty Jane Narver served as president of the Library Board.

The architects conceived the new Central Library building as a celebration of books, deciding after some research that despite the arrival of the 21st century and the "digital age," people still respond to books printed on [[paper]]. The 11-story Central Library has a capacity for over 1.5 million books, in comparison to only 900,000 in the old library building.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://lmnarchitects.com/project/seattle-central-library|title=LMN|website=Seattle Central Library|access-date=November 1, 2016}}</ref>  The architects also worked to make the library inviting to the public, rather than stuffy, which they discovered was the popular perception of libraries as a whole.

Although the library is an unusual shape from the outside, the architects' philosophy was to let the building's required functions dictate what it should look like, rather than imposing a structure and making the functions conform to that.

===Layout===

The first level, facing 4th Avenue, has a lobby, holds pick-up, and a children's center. It also includes the Microsoft Auditorium, which seats 275 people for events. An escalator connects the 4th Avenue lobby to the third level, which faces 5th Avenue and is named the Norcliffe Foundation Living Room. It includes a small cafe, a gift shop, and a teen center.<ref name="ExpandsHours">{{cite news |date=January 17, 2023 |title=The Central Library Expands Hours, and 20-Plus Things to Do There |url=https://shelftalkblog.wordpress.com/2023/01/17/the-central-library-expands-hours-and-20-plus-things-to-do-there/ |work=Shelf Talk Blog |publisher=Seattle Public Library |accessdate=January 23, 2023}}</ref> The fourth level, named the "Red Floor", uses 13 shades of red paint on surfaces and includes four meeting rooms and two computer labs.<ref>{{cite news |date=July 18, 2022 |title=The Central Library's Iconic Red Floor Reopens To The Public |url=https://shelftalkblog.wordpress.com/2022/07/18/the-central-librarys-iconic-red-floor-reopens-to-the-public/ |work=Shelf Talk Blog |publisher=Seattle Public Library |accessdate=January 23, 2023}}</ref> The main computer lab is located on the fifth level, named the [[Charles Simonyi]] Mixing Chamber, with 338 computer stations and a [[library reference desk|reference desk]].<ref name="Tours">{{cite web |title=Take a tour of the Central Library |url=https://www.spl.org/hours-and-locations/central-library/central-library-highlights/central-library-tours |publisher=Seattle Public Library |accessdate=January 23, 2023}}</ref>

A major section of the building is the "Books Spiral", which is designed to display the library's nonfiction collection without breaking up the [[Dewey Decimal Classification|Dewey Decimal System]] classification onto different floors or sections. The collection occupies the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth stories on a continuous series of shelves with a maximum slope of 2&nbsp;degrees.<ref name="Tours"/> The eighth level also includes music practice rooms, while the ninth level has a genealogy collection and map room. The tenth level is divided between the Seattle Room, which contains local history collections, and the Betty Jane Narver Reading Room with 400 seats. It also includes the highest viewpoints in the building.<ref name="Tours"/>

New functions include automatic book sorting and conveyance, self-checkout for patrons, pervasive wireless communications among the library staff, and over 400 public computer terminals.

Below the library is a 143-stall parking garage that is open for use by library patrons and other members of the public for a fee.<ref>{{cite web |title=Paid parking at the Central Library |url=https://www.spl.org/hours-and-locations/central-library/central-library-highlights/central-library-parking |publisher=Seattle Public Library |accessdate=March 19, 2023}}</ref>