The innovative design of the law library at Marquette Law School is the subject of “A library without borders,” a feature in the May 2011 issue of the AALL Spectrum, the monthly publication of the American Association of Law Libraries. The design of the library, which is integrated across the four floors of the law school, reflects Marquette’s commitment to a welcoming environment for scholarship.

Eckstein Hall, which houses the law library, opened in September 2010. Authors Julia Jaet and Patricia Cervenka are the law libary’s reference/administrative services librarian ...[more]

The design team of Shepley Bulfinch of Boston and Lake|Flato Architects of San Antonio has begun schematic design for Austin’s New Central Library.

A destination and a city landmark in the making, the New Central Library will welcome residents to a facility that emphasizes the delivery of information in both electronic and book formats, and includes a mix of lively and contemplative spaces. Collections will be displayed to encourage discovery, supported by state-of-the-art technologies integrated throughout the facility.

“What will the library need to be 30 years from now? In 2009, we could not have envisioned the astonishing development of e-books, tablets, and smartphones in 2010,” said Sid Bowen, managing principal of ...[more]

McClay Library at Queen’sUniversity Belfast received a Commendation in the UK’s 2011 Civic Trust Awards held in Manchester, England, on March 4.

Established in 1959, the Civic Trust Awards recognize the best in architecture, design, planning, landscape and public art. Awards are given to projects of the highest quality design that are judged to have made a positive cultural, social, or economic contribution to the local community.

McClay Library was the only project from Northern Ireland to be so recognized. This is the second major UK award for the ...[more]

The Boole Postgraduate Research Library at University College Cork in Ireland has received a “High Commendation” from the Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL) in the Society’s 2010 Library Design Awards, announced earlier this month.

The citation reads, in part, “This… extraordinary environment work[s] well for its audience. The building is linked to its environment and to the rest of the campus through the clever use of materials. The atrium has a wonderful sense of light, making an impressive entrance to the building. There is a strong ...[more]

It’s official! Salem State University (Salem, MA) broke ground for its new library and learning commons on December 7. University president Patricia Maguire Meservey and Jacob Segal, chair of the university’s board of trustees, were joined by local political leaders and top state education officials in a ceremony on the university’s north campus.

The 124,000 square foot facility replaces the previous campus library, which was closed in late 2007 for concerns about its structural safety. The four-story library will include instructional labs, group study rooms, and a testing center, and ...[more]

The McClay Library at Queen’s University Belfast, in Northern Ireland, has received the 2010 Sustainability Award from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), it was announced today.

The Library, which won the 2010 RICS Northern Ireland award earlier this year, was chosen over category winners from the other RICS geographic regions across the UK for this prestigious national award.

As one of the judges noted in the announcement, “The new Library is proving an invaluable resource for students at Queen’s University, Belfast. The building achieves excellence on two fronts: in terms of providing essential educational support and through ...[more]