Response

The award-winning addition features an interior courtyard, central skylight, and window-lined north side which flood the library with diffused natural light throughout the day. The arrangement of space within the library forms a clear pathway through zones including maker space, children’s and teenage area, general collections, and multi-purpose rooms. Mechanical systems were assessed for their impact on capital cost, ease of maintenance and long-term operational cost, leading to the choice of an air-cooled variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system coupled with a dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS). Within less than a year of reopening, the library rose from 15th to the 3rd most visited libraries in Hamilton Public Library’s network.