8/13/2009 6:00:00 AM Architect says library design likely to change
Ryan Dostalek ConnectFitchburg.com
The architect who will design Fitchburg's library said it might differ dramatically from the preliminary conceptual design that has received mixed reviews from residents.
And, yes, the architect, Joe Huberty wants to hear from you before he designs it, which will take just a few months.
Huberty, who works for the firm Engberg Anderson, said his design has to accommodate several factors not included in the conceptual design, including a possible roundabout at the intersection of Lacy Road and Research Park Drive, the need for two entrances (one at Lacy Road and another facing the parking zone on the upper level), and one that will provide more flexibility than the L-shaped conceptual design.
The City Council approved the contract with Engberg Anderson when it met July 28.
Huberty said he has planned a "fairly aggressive" schedule to produce a final design in October, although it will take longer to flesh out the building's details.
He plans to meet with elected officials and focus groups in early September, followed by public meetings. He will then produce several conceptual designs for public review.
Huberty, 50, said he has worked on about half the 84 libraries designed by the firm. Many are located in Wisconsin, including the South Branch and the Sequoia Branch in Madison, the library in Lake Mills, and libraries in Manitowoc, Two Rivers and Green Bay, to name a few.
His overarching purpose is a design that's compatible with Fitchburg Center and the Civic Center. The location "provides lots of opportunity" and is somewhat similar to a site of the Kress Family Branch Library in De Pere, which was on a slope next to a river.
Huberty said the city appears to have conducted a lengthy dialogue about the function of a library, which should facilitate the design process. The interest and commitment of elected officials is also a plus.
"I want to make sure the design resonates with residents," he said. "This a building for them and their children. There are no cookie-cutter designs."
Huberty said the existence of competing visions for a library - an iconic design, a flexible space, a social center, a repository for future technology or the desire to simply store as many books as possible, for example - "are only a problem if people haven't gotten together to express their views," he said. "There doesn't have to be a unanimous agreement, but the process should be transparent."
A design can accommodate several goals and "should represent a core aesthetic. We want a timeless building, not a clichéd aesthetic," Huberty said.
