Library Buildings around the World

Moffat Kinoshita, Hamilton, ON - Canada
Cannon Design acquires assets of Moffat Kinoshita Architects.
http://www.cannondesign.com
Cannon Design, an internationally recognized architectural, interior design, engineering and planning firm with offices throughout
North America has acquired the business of Moffat Kinoshita Architects. Moffat Kinoshita Architects' principals and employees will
become an integral part of Cannon Design's regional network. Cannon Design is consistently ranked among the leaders in planning
and design for the health sciences, higher education, sports and recreation, as well as corporate and commercial development. At
present, with a staff of over 700 delivering services through 14 regional centres, the firm is working in 32 US states, 7 Canadian
provinces and 15 countries in Latin America, the Middle East, the Far East, Asia and Europe. Cannon Design has been operating in
Canada since 1985 through offices in Vancouver, Victoria and Toronto. Over the last 40 years, Moffat Kinoshita has earned a
reputation as a well-respected, award-winning design firm with a portfolio of work in healthcare, higher education and civic
architecture throughout Ontario, Canada and abroad. Along with Cannon Design's staff of ten Toronto-based interior designers,
Moffat Kinoshita's staff of 30 will continue to serve clients through existing offices in Toronto and Hamilton.
Levitt Goodman Architects, Toronto, ON - Canada
http://levittgoodmanarchitects.com
Libraries:
York University, Keele Campus, Learning Commons, Toronto, ON – Canada on design
York University has selected Levitt Goodman Architects to develop detailed designs for its competition-winning design for a 26,390square-foot
renovation of York University’s main library on its Keele campus. The “Learning Commons” will provide users with a
mix of group study areas that will shift York University’s 40-year-old Scott Library into a progressive learning environment. The $2million
renovation will be the first initiative on the campus specifically designed to reflect York’s pedagogical shift from a teachercentered
approach to active and collaborative learning. The three-stage selection process began with an invited list of 12 firms. Four
shortlisted firms were invited for an interview from which three firms were hired to participate in a two-week design competition.
Levitt Goodman was selected for its balance of fresh ideas and proven accountability. The firm’s winning scheme offers a mix of
open and semi-private multipurpose areas designed to promote interaction, collaboration and group study. The first part of the
multi-phased initiative will proceed under the direction of Brock James, Levitt Goodman’s partner-in-charge of the poject. The
library will remain open during the construction period, which is expected to commence in the spring of 2010, with a projected
completion date for the start of the fall semester. "The concept of a library is changing into a very active public place," said Brock
James. "With this project, York University is making a powerful commitment to its students. We look forward to helping the
university to make the library one of the campus’s key learning environments. It will be designed to encourage connections with both
colleagues and the wider world. We regard this as a significant opportunity and an exciting design challenge.” The Scott Library
renovation furthers Levitt Goodman Architect’s specialization in library design. The firm’s recent library projects include the
Musagetes library at the University of Waterloo School of Architecture, Bridgenorth Library, the five-year multimillion-dollar
renovation of the Queens Square Central Branch of the Cambridge Libraries system and the $24.9-million renovation of the
Kitchener Public Library (in association with Walter Fedy Partnership and Phillip H. Carter Architect) which will be completed in
2013.
This is the first in a series of stories about York University’s new learning commons that will examine different aspects of this
innovative, learning-centred place for students. The learning commons, which will be housed in the Scott Library on York’s Keele
campus, will feature an innovative design, a green retrofit to lighten its footprint and supportive programming for students. Phase 1
of the commons will open in September 2010. York has always striven to do things differently from other Canadian universities and
nowhere is this more apparent than in how the University is approaching the creation of its new learning commons. A learning
commons is a new kind of flexible learning space where students can work individually or collaboratively in groups and have access
to a variety of academic supports such as research, writing and learning skills assistance. Learning commons are typically situated in
academic libraries and are sometimes referred to as information or library commons. Above: A conceptual drawing of the
Collaboratory area in York’s new learning commons. The learning commons will be located on the second floor of the Scott Library.
Starting this summer, the second floor of the Scott Library will undergo a major facelift as walls are torn down, new areas are
opened up and the space is reconfigured into a learning commons. The space will feature comfortable seating, collaborative work
areas and a hub that will bring research, writing and learning skills development supports together in one place. The renovation will
add hundreds of new study seats, open up thousands of square feet and will include a green retrofit that will decrease its footprint
and energy consumption. The library’s IT capacity and capability will also be enhanced with LCD screens for collaborative work
and desktop workstations. The learning commons will feature distinct regions or zones: The Collaboratory will feature modular
furniture, including sofas, easy chairs and tables that can be moved and regrouped. A central stepped area will create a layered
seating area where students can plug in and stretch out. There will be booths where groups can meet and work together and review
findings and presentations on large flat-panel screens. The Hub will offer a place to go for academic support. The Hub will be the
home of the research, writing and learning skills consultation "pods". In addition, the area will be equipped with instructional
spaces and computer workstations. The Salon will house the Scott Library's collection of reference books and will contain quiet
pockets of lounge furniture, as well as important modern Canadian art by David Partridge, Claude Tousignant and others. Two
state-of-the-art group study rooms will be available for booking by small groups of up to eight people. An art walk will display work
by York students, faculty and staff. “York University’s new learning commons will be very cutting edge,” says Mark Robertson,
associate University librarian. Robertson and Norma Sue Fisher-Stitt, York’s associate vice-president academic learning initiatives,
together with a team of faculty, librarians, staff and students, have been working for more than a year on developing and refining
the concepts and programming for the University’s learning commons. As part of their work, the group conducted focus groups and
surveys, and engaged in dialogue with students about what kind of library and learning commons they wanted and needed."Last
year we did a series of focus groups with students to find out what they needed from their libraries," says Robertson. "The findings
were very interesting. Students told us that when they leave the formal setting of the classroom, they need a place to absorb what
happens in the classroom. They need spaces where they can engage with their learning, either on their own or with their peers. York
is a commuter university and as a result, the need is higher for this kind of place for students. "Students talked about the need for a
variety of different types of differentiated spaces for their learning. Typically libraries have been very formal environments designed
for individual study," says Robertson. "The libraries have those spaces, but students said they also need more informal areas for
collaborative work. "We asked students who we saw working in Vari Hall, in hallways or cafeterias why they were there and they
told us that they had spontaneously decided to work together. Many said that such meetings couldn’t take place in the library
because they had to book the group study rooms in advance," says Robertson. "It quickly became clear that this was an important
part of learning that would be enriched because of all of the services, resources and collections that exist in the library," says
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