Half Moon Bay Library

Project Details

Project Description

FROM THE ARCHITECTS:

Noll & Tam worked with the City of Half Moon Bay and the County of San Mateo to build a new library for the Coastside region that will serve their growing service population. The 22,000-square-foot library is an important new building in Half Moon Bay, where locals have a deep-rooted sense of community and strong feelings about development. To secure community support, our design team held seven meetings to listen to concerns and take residents through the development of the design. Each meeting reflected a stage in the process – beginning with basic programming bubbles, then site diagrams, before moving to sketches and renderings. We illustrated the conceptual design process to stakeholders, allowing them to see how our design responded to their needs and concerns, and gaining buy-in and support.

The character of Half Moon Bay is beloved by the community, and people had strong feelings about preserving it. Our meetings had to be carefully constructed and run to hear all the different opinions – both supporting and opposing the library construction. and the meetings had to be carefully run to allow a

The result is a library whose design reflects the character of the community and fits into the existing built landscape. The building is large and flexible enough to meet the region’s future needs, without imposing an overwhelming mass on this small coastal town.

The design is that of a refined coastal palette. It celebrates Half Moon Bay’s agricultural roots and coastal location without imposing an overwhelming sense of either. The key to delivering this was restraint in the design. There are no surfboards or cresting waves, but instead the design is evocative of the ocean views from the second floor. Natural materials such as patinated copper, wood, and rough stone are articulated with crisp, clean, and contemporary detailing. The exterior materials are chosen to be durable but natural – we anticipate that they will weather over time, and also will not require a great deal of maintenance and upkeep.

The interior design will enhance the users’ experience and support the library service model for both public and staff work spaces. The library’s functional organization was developed in close consultation with library staff, and is based on community feedback, priorities and preferences. It was important to staff to have limited services points to allow for low staffing levels, and this is achieved through an open design that allows for sightlines and visibility.

The highly flexible space can serve multiple functions as user needs change, while remaining connected through unifying design elements. For instance, although it is almost impossible to tell, three-quarters of the stacks are on wheels, giving the library the flexibility to change the layout of the room over time, or even for special events. The dynamic spaces are comfortable for all age groups, provide clear wayfinding, and incorporate a beautiful palette of colors and finishes.

Notable features (be specific and include dimension and materials):

In the main adult area on the second floor, the dramatic structure of the roof is exposed – a composite wood and metal structure that combines three different structural systems. The king-post trusses and tie-rods are evocative of the rigging of a ship, in keeping with the coastal vernacular of the design.

Much of the interior and exterior has warm, stained Douglas Fir, but the elevator core is wrapped in weathered teak wood, which makes for a beautiful accent as patrons ascend to the second floor.

Playful 3Form plastic panels are used throughout the interior. The translucent white material is intended to evoke coastal fog, while the green and blue pops of color in places like the children’s area is meant to represent playful water droplets and sea glass.

The courtyard is carefully oriented to provide protection from the wind, as the area can be chilly year-round. By blocking the wind with the massing of the building and using darker materials like black metal composite seats to trap the warmth of the sun, the courtyard is able to be a fully functional outdoor space, complete with an amphitheater for children’s story time.

The design of the building carefully balances the need to fit into the residential context with also looking like a public space that invites visitors to enter. For example, neighbors did not want an all-glass community room that would allow patrons to stare into their living rooms. Instead, the walls of the community room are enclosed, with a few strategic window cutouts and a solid band of glass only above the wall height. The result is that when the room is in use, it emits a warm glow from the high windows, drawing the eye of pedestrians to the lit-up wood ceiling without being intrusive for neighbors.

Design challenges:

The library needed to be a large, 22,000 SF building in order to serve not only the City of Half Moon Bay but 10 other unincorporated communities along the coast (from Montara to Pescadero). However, city residents did not want an imposing urban building that would not fit the residential context of the city and the neighborhood. The massing of the building minimizes its impact. By breaking up the building into two rectangular volumes, and presenting a single story along the street, the façade obscures the larger second-story height in the back of the building. Inside the building and up the main staircase, the large adult area, with soaring ceilings and views, comes as a surprise to patrons visiting for the first time.

The client wanted an operable partition wall in the community room, so that it could be separated into two smaller spaces. The design challenge was to keep the room tall and open, while also making the ceiling low enough to meet the operable partition track that bisects the room. The solution was a folded wood ceiling, evocative of undulating waves, that allows for height in some areas, and dips down in others. The ceiling is also microperforated in order to provide a better acoustical environment.

Sustainable features (include any certifications such as LEED, Living Building, etc.):

Targeting LEED Gold and Zero Net Energy certification.

In keeping with the direction of public buildings in California, the County of San Mateo supported a high sustainability goal, and the building aims to achieve both Zero Net Energy and LEED Gold certification. Sustainable features include a photovoltaic array, bioswales, recycled materials, ample daylight, a highly efficient building envelope, high performance HVAC systems, and low water use fixtures and drought tolerant planting – weaving sustainable elements through all parts of the site, building, and design.

Project Credits
Project: Half Moon Bay Library, Half Moon Bay, Calif.
Client: City of Half Moon Bay
Architect: Noll & Tam Architects, Berkely, Calif.
Civil Engineer: BKF Engineers
Structural Engineer: Mar Structural Design
M/E/P Engineer: Integral Group
Landscape Architecture: Royston Hanamoto Alley & Abey, Inc.
Lighting: Integral Group (lighting)
AV/Acoustics/Telecom/Security: Charles M Salter Associates, Inc.
Commissioning: Guttmann & Blaevoet
Spec Writing: Richard C. Hubble
Cost Estimating: Oppenheim Lewis, Inc.
Signage/Graphics: Wendy Wilsher
Contractor: BHM Construction, Inc.