The new Innisfail Library is in the planning stages.

INNISFAIL LIBRARY

CONCEPT STATEMENT

The site is located along Highway 54, north of the railroad tracks and Main Street, with the cemetery to the west.  It is higher than the residential neighborhood to the east, providing glimpses to Dodd’s lake.  An aspen and birch forest covers the site with a narrow clearing bisecting it; speculated to be the old road to an original Innisfail homestead.  Such a delicate environment demands a building solution that treads lightly – nesting into its natural surroundings.

The concept evolves into a civic precinct for the town of Innisfail comprising three separate functions; a library, a senior’s centre and a future town hall.  The old road becomes the main circulation spine through the building and is maintained as a path through the site.  The community can access the site through various pedestrian walkways within Innisfail that connect to this path, or from a new meandering road that conceals the building from Highway 54, leaving the forest intact while slowly revealing the building as one drives through the site.

Entering the building, each programmatic function reveals a series of open and inviting spaces.  The roof shape responds to the environment, floating up and out to the forest and the sky, shaded from the sun.  Exposed wood columns in the central spaces act as edges and frame various work areas.  The east wall is fully glazed providing natural light into the library, senior’s centre and a community living room, each with views to the forest beyond.

The library is open and flexible.  Perimeter book shelving surrounds the interior and the positioning of book stacks envelopes the user with library materials while framing views to the exterior.  The senior’s centre is also open and provides space for a variety of recreation areas.  The building also provides meeting and multipurpose rooms for general use.

Ample parking is carefully stitched between the trees and the project envisions a second phase that will incorporate a new town hall.Sustainable design principles are incorporated throughout the project that promises to set a positive example for similar development across the province.

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