BCA recently worked with the Wheaton Public Library to dramatically expand their overcrowded facility.  The expansion plan included working with the City of Wheaton to connect the library to an adjacent downtown park by removing a street that separated the library from the park.  In place of the street, we provided a pedestrian plaza with space for civic events, concerts, art fairs and farmer’s markets.  The new plaza successfully ties the library building to historic Adams Park and reestablishes the library’s long connection to the Adams family who built and dedicated the first free library building in Wheaton in 1891.

The building expansion and renovation includes expanded stack areas for the physical collection and both infrastructure and space for computer-based resources.  To turn the 60s/70s era library into a contemporary, information age facility, we added computer training rooms, adult and youth group study rooms, multipurpose meeting rooms, quiet areas for adults, active areas for youth, storage areas and office spaces.  We designed the building to bring natural light to all areas of the library and took advantage of the proximity of the park by providing many opportunities for both patrons and staff to enjoy views of the historic park.