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RAETHER LIBRARY

Trinity College
Hartford, 2003

PROJECT DETAILS

LOCATION

Trinity College
Hartford, Connecticut

SIZE

118,000 sf
– renovation of two buildings: the original 1952 building, and a 1977 addition

60,000 sf
– new construction

CLIENT

Trinity College

COST

$30.0 million (USD)

COMPLETION

2003

TYPOLOGY

Re-examining the alcove reading room as one of a series of new spaces for the Trinity College library.

NEW PATTERNS OF USE

The library of the 21st century is the same as its predecessors in some ways and different in others. The new programmes that characterize the new library involve computing services, media work areas, cafes, 24- hour access and an array of group study spaces.

Notwithstanding the above, a good library needs always to provide a variety of comfortable places to sit and relax and read and think — and to sleep or be on the lookout for a date.

LIBRARY RENEWAL AS SYMBOL

The Raether Library and its renewal symbolizes Trinity’s commitment to academic excellence and scholarship in an environment befitting its great historic campus.

The library renewal is also very much focused on benchmarking Trinity’s academic programmes against its closest liberal arts rivals.

CREDITS ↓

ARCHITECTS

KPMB ARCHITECTS: Thomas Payne (partner-in-charge), Goran Milosevic, Victoria Gregory (associates), Margaret Graham, Mark Jaffar, Alex Lam, Brent Wagler, Matthew Wilson, Ramon Janer, Nelson Kwong, Katya Marshall, Bill Colaco, Jill Greaves, Virginia Dos Reis, Shabbar Sagarwala

CONSULTANTS

Gilbane Construction Company (project management), Le Messurier consultants (structural), Vanzelm Heywood & Shadford Inc. (mechanical/electrical), Westcott and Mapes, inc. (civil), Philip R. Sherman (fire and life safety), Suzanne Powadiuk Designs (lighting), Sasaki Associates inc. (landscape)

PHOTOGRAPHY

Al Ferreira, Peter Sellar