Designed by Ambient Architects, the Public Library in Choszczówka, Warsaw, combines community space with an environmentally conscious approach to materials, energy, and landscape.

The project prioritizes energy efficiency, renewable resources, and low-emission natural materials while responding to the surrounding landscape and local context. It has been nominated for the 2026 European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award.

The library is located in a predominantly single-family residential district characterized by pre-war architecture and extensive greenery but limited public space. It accommodates library areas for adults and children, a multifunctional conference room, a children’s activity space, and administrative offices for the district library network.

The lobby provides space for informal work and meetings, while the adjacent green area extends the library outdoors during summer for reading, educational activities, and events. The unfenced site maintains continuity between the building and its wider landscape setting.

Retaining existing routes through the site

Before construction, the site was a clearing crossed by informal paths used as shortcuts by local residents. The entrances were positioned to connect with these existing routes, while a parallel passage alongside the building maintains pedestrian movement across the site.

Timber cladding, loosely arranged planting, and mineral paving were selected to respond to the wooded setting.

Prefabricated timber construction
The building uses a hybrid structural system based on prefabricated timber elements, with a precast-concrete staircase and elevator shaft. The primary structure is glulam, while the walls use timber-frame panels with wood-fiber insulation. The facade is clad in thermally treated pine, and the window frames are also timber.

Prefabrication was used to improve material efficiency and limit waste generated on site. Timber components were planned and manufactured off site, while material selection considered environmental impact, durability, and potential for reuse or recycling.

Wood-fiber insulation was selected for its environmental profile, potential for reuse or recycling, and higher heat-storage capacity compared with conventional mineral-wool insulation.

Material efficiency and indoor air quality

Structural timber elements and the concrete walls of the staircase were left exposed, reducing the need for additional finishes. Elsewhere, the material palette includes plywood cladding, wood-wool panels, timber-slat ceilings, and linoleum flooring. Materials were selected with consideration for production impacts, potential for reuse or recycling, and indoor air quality.

According to the manufacturer, the gypsum-fiber boards used in the timber-frame walls contain approximately 80–85 percent gypsum and 15–20 percent paper fibers, with the paper component made entirely from recycled material.

Linoleum was selected as a floor finish for its high proportion of natural and renewable raw materials, including linseed oil, wood flour, resins, limestone, pigments, and jute. The specified Forbo Marmoleum Cocoa also incorporates recycled linoleum and cocoa bean shells, a by-product of the food industry.

Materials were assessed according to their environmental impact during production, embodied carbon, renewable or recycled content, potential for reuse and recycling, end-of-life options, indoor air quality, durability, and contribution to occupant well-being.

Energy efficiency and rainwater management

The building is heated by a heat pump, while a photovoltaic installation supplies part of its electricity demand. Rainwater is directed to rain gardens and stored in a tank for landscape irrigation. The walls and windows were designed with low U-values to improve thermal performance.

Extensive daylight access reduces reliance on artificial lighting, while motion sensors help limit unnecessary electricity use. The glazing arrangement responds to solar exposure and shading from existing trees. South-facing glazing benefits from deciduous trees that provide shade in summer while allowing greater solar gain in winter after their leaves have fallen.

Flexible spaces for community use

The building was designed to accommodate different requirements from the library, local residents, and NGOs. The conference room can host library activities and district library meetings or connect with the lobby to create a larger event space.

Furniture can be stored and rearranged for different activities, while the layout allows parts of the building to operate independently outside regular library opening hours.

Adaptability and reversible construction

Adaptability to changing needs was an important part of the design. Although the building was not conceived as a fully demountable structure, circular-economy principles were applied selectively through material efficiency, prefabrication, renewable and recycled materials, and mechanically fixed or modular components where feasible.

The slatted ceiling uses a modular system that can be dismantled and relocated. Plywood wall finishes and suspended ceiling elements are mechanically fixed rather than permanently bonded, allowing them to be removed with limited damage and potentially reused. Visible connections within the main timber structure also facilitate future inspection and repair and may support eventual disassembly.

Warsaw Green Building Standard

The library was assessed against the Warsaw Green Building Standard during its development and became the first building in Warsaw to receive a certificate of compliance.

Developed by the City of Warsaw for new municipal buildings, the Warsaw Green Building Standard assesses projects across six areas: greenery and site development, water management, energy efficiency, sustainable mobility, circular-economy principles and materials, and occupant health, comfort, and safety.