McHenry Addition and Renovation Project
Executive Summary
The University of California, Santa Cruz’s mission includes creating and disseminating knowledge through instruction, research and service. The UCSC University Library critically supports this mission by providing access to and delivery of information resources in all formats and locations.
The University Library selects, acquires, organizes, circulates and preserves its collections, and teaches how to access physical and electronic resources and make effective use of them. The library’s ability to fulfill its mission is a direct function of the physical environment in which it houses its collections and provides such access.
The University Library consists of two facilities. The McHenry Library provides resources to support the campus’ Humanities, Social Sciences, and Arts Divisions, as well as centralized library administrative and technical support services. The Science & Engineering Library provides information resources for the Natural Sciences Division and the School of Engineering. The University Library also administers the campus Instructional Media Services unit, currently housed in Clark Kerr Hall. This Detailed DPP addresses the McHenry Library.
UCSC’s 2001/2002 student population was 12,749, with growth anticipated to reach 17,215 students within 10 years. During this time, the number of graduate study programs is anticipated to grow by 100%. This campus growth requires additional collections in all formats, as well as new methods of accessing information in electronic form.
The McHenry Library, designed in the early 1960s and completed over 25 years ago, is rated seismically poor and has neither a fire sprinkler system nor an adequate HVAC system to preserve the $200,000,000 worth of materials located there. The library is deficient in its physical size and in the configuration of stack space, service areas, and staff work and office space. It is also deficient in the number and design of reader stations and group study areas.
The library is filled beyond capacity. As the collection has increased in size, reader areas have been removed to make room for new shelving. With shelving at capacity, the library must send one volume off site to the Northern Regional Library Facility (NRLF) for every new volume acquired, even though it is by far the most intensively used collection in the UC system. Existing services are scattered throughout the library, causing inefficiency in staff utilization. More efficient operation requires consolidation of service points and reorganization of librarians and support staff. Overall, these deficiencies critically limit the Library’s ability to support the research and instructional needs of the expanding enrollment and academic programs.
Development of a program for expanding and retrofitting the McHenry Library began with a series of programming work sessions and interviews with Library Consultant Philip D. Leighton and BOORA Architects, during which goals and objectives and space needs were identified. The architectural team of BOORA and Dan Casey Architects provided additional analysis of site planning and design issues, as well as analysis of the building systems and renovation needs of the existing library. Additional design team members included Rutherford & Chekene, structural; Flack and Kurtz, mechanical and electrical; Bowman and Williams, civil; Davis Langdon Adamson, cost consultant; and Joni Janecki, landscape architect.
Studies concluded with the following recommendations. Provide for an addition of 116,550 gsf. Seismically strengthen the existing building and renovate such that all fire and life safety systems are code complaint. Provide for additional renovation to comply with ADA and energy codes. Locate library program area within the building to reflect a state-of-the-art academic research library, addressing the consolidation of service points and increased staff efficiencies.
The design team evaluated collection capacity, seating, user services, and staff work areas in the library. With the design team, DPR Construction evaluated site logistics and construction phasing while maintaining continued operations throughout construction. Based upon these work sessions, a program was developed that expands collection capacity, includes up-to-date library service concepts increasing access to electronic resources, and consolidates existing service points. Existing primary service activities will be consolidated from five desks to two:
Other existing service points will be also be consolidated, and include:
The space requirements for the expanded building are based on an analysis of existing space use, projections of collection growth according to UC planning guidelines, and consideration of anticipated changes in the nature of library usage and services. The Library is being planned for services, collections and users in the year 2018-19, nine years beyond anticipated occupancy in 2009-2010. This coincides with conservative projections of collection growth.
In addition to evaluating the library needs, the design team evaluated Capacity Space needs. The Capacity Space is University academic space for instruction, faculty and staff support. One half of the new addition’s Assignable Square Footage (ASF) will be dedicated to Capacity Space at initial occupancy. Capacity Space includes the Departments of Math, Writing, Art History, campus-wide teaching assistant offices, and instructional development support (to remain in library after rest of capacity space moves out). Instructional spaces include class labs and computer labs for these departments. The Capacity Space may occupy areas in either the new addition or the existing building.
The functional spaces programmed for the expanded library building total 196,430 ASF. Based upon 114,830 existing ASF currently within McHenry Library, a building addition of 81,600 ASF, or 116,550 GSF (Gross Square Feet), assuming 70% efficiency, is required. Total site capacity for the site selected is a building addition of 141,000 GSF, or 98,700 ASF. If the full site capacity is developed, this would add approximately 17,000 ASF to the library, meeting collection growth and user seating demands for five to six additional years - to the year 2023-2024. The current DPP focuses on 81,600 ASF of the 116,550 GSF addition and not the full site capacity development.
Based upon analysis of the existing site and review of the University’s Long Range Development Plan (LRDP), the program/design team reviewed siting and conceptual design alternatives for the McHenry Library Addition. In addition, the design/engineering team reviewed the conditions of the existing library’s structural, mechanical, electrical and life safety systems to determine the need for upgrading.
At occupancy, Capacity Space will comprise 40,800 ASF of the 81,600 ASF in the library program. The library will phase into the 40,800 ASF at the time the Capacity Space vacates the library building. The library program within the 40,800 ASF includes predominantly General Collection (stacks), user seating areas, and Special Collections storage. This strategy aligns with projected growth in the collection and an increase in student population.
The proposed design concept locates the building expansion to the south of the existing library building. The addition is proposed to be five stories in height, matching the existing building’s number of floors and aligning each floor of the addition with the floors of the existing building. Service to the building will be at the west side of the existing building (in the northwest corner). In this location, service roads (impervious surface area) are minimized, existing road patterns are retained and put to dual use, minimum excavation and reworking of natural contours is required and many existing redwood groves remain untouched. Expanding to the south avoids sinkholes and ravines to the west and east of the library. It is the most cost effective solution of all the alternates studied.
The existing building requires extensive renovation to address fire and life safety, seismic and other non-complaint code issues. The life safety and seismic renovation components are of an order of magnitude such that executing them will trigger other code issues. The existing circular stair is non-conforming and requires replacement. Existing non-complaint ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) conditions are throughout the building and must be corrected. Toilet rooms are inaccessible and plumbing fixture water consumption exceeds code. The building interior lighting wattage exceeds current energy codes and its current configuration is not functional with the new stack configuration. These are a few of the issues studied which led to the recommendation to extensively remodel most areas of the existing building, particularly where remodeling was required to meet the functional program, code requirements, fire and life safety, ADA and seismic strengthening requirements. Where possible, existing cores and vertical risers are retained. Throughout the completed addition and renovation, compliance with the ADA is required.
Based on seismic evaluations prepared by Rutherford & Chekene, the existing building will perform “poorly” during a Design Basis Earthquake (DBE) level earthquake. The University Policy on Seismic Safety indicates that “the intent of seismic rehabilitation shall be to reconstruct buildings...so that they would have a “good” seismic performance rating.” The existing structure significantly lacks the ability to withstand dynamic lateral forces. Portions of the building, including the roof slab and stair core, could potentially fail, leading to potential severe injury and life safety threat. For this reason, the seismic strengthening of the existing structure is of primary importance in the renovation of the McHenry Library.
In addition to the architectural code improvements to the existing library, technical improvements to the existing building systems include improvements to the HVAC (Heating Ventilating and Air Conditioning) system, to include cooling and VAV (Variable Air Volume) control, the addition of an approved automatic sprinkler system and a detectable fire alarm system.
