This project – about 18,000 sf of both new and existing construction – was a joint venture between the public library system and the City of St. Matthews. The goal was to double the size of the existing library while integrating critical aspects of the 1930’s St Matthews campus, the eclectic small scale residential context, and the contemporary “design forward” identity of Louisville Free Public Library.

The design team focused on creating flexible spaces that could accommodate program changes in the future while finding specific elements to improve the environment for diverse user groups. Smaller more intimate reading and study spaces were strategically located within the double-volume space, all open to exterior views and diffused daylight.

The centerpiece of the library is a taller volume capped by a channel glass lantern, used by the library as a kind of „marketplace“ of new resources and personal assistance.

About 6,000 sf of existing building (part of the attached City Hall building) was renovated for use as children’s and teen spaces. Colorful lighting, varying ceiling elevations, and a new roof monitor were introduced in order to mitigate the effects of the low structure.

A renovation of the St. Matthews Eline Library saw the addition of Bendheim’s channel glass, highlighting the building’s entrance. The channel glass walls allow for the interior to be filled with glare-free, diffused daylight. At night, the channel glass centerpiece acts as a lantern, extending up between the two more solid volumes of the building.