User:JonMoore/Salt Lake City Public Library

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The Salt Lake City Public Library main branch building is an architecturally unique structure in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Location
The main library is located at 210 East 400 South across from the Salt Lake City and County Building and Washington Square.

History
In November 1998 taxpayers were asked to fund the building of a new downtown library branch. Voters approved a $84 million bond. Several architects submitted plans, but the firm of Moshe Safdie and Associates was eventually chosen. Ground broke in October 2000 with construction completed in.

Features
THe Salt Lake City main library branch is a 240,000 feet&sup2; five-story tall, wedge-shaped building. The library has a collection of over 500,000 books as well as a subscription to over 60 newspapers and magazines and 163 internet capable computers.

The structure includes 44,960 yards&sup3; of concrete as well as 176,368 feet&sup2; of glass. One of its most striking features is the five-story curved glass wall.

Outside the library is Library Square, a landscaped and paved plaza. Originally, much of what is now landscaped open space was to be out buildings, but Mayor Rocky Anderson asked for these to be left out and create a public park. There are several shops on the square as well as the studios of radio station KCPW. Library Square is paved with limestone from Israel.

Upon entering the five story building, one enters the "Urban Room", which has the same limestone paving as the square. The room extends for all five floors and ends with a 20,000 feet&sup2; skylight. More shops line one side of the Urban Room.

A rooftop garden completes the structure. It is planted with trees, grasses, flowering bulbs and various perennials.

Other features of the library include:
 * A spiraling fireplaces which occur on four of the floors and were designed to resemble a column of fire as viewed from 200 East and 400 South.
 * An art gallery displaying works of local artists.
 * Coffee Shop.
 * Children's library.
 * Spiralling "grand staircase" and three glass elevators.