Route 9 Library

New Castle, Delaware

The Route 9 Library serves as a catalyst for community transformation and as the anchor to the area’s new innovation district. The bold and welcoming design speaks to the library’s role as a 21st century community center by hosting an assortment of program types that promote learning, spark creativity, encourage technological exploration, and foster connectivity: a STEM classroom, Maker Space, Black Box Theater, Café, Scriptorium for developing writing skills, Lego Room, and more.

Billy Askey - Lead Designer
Marc Oman Chambers - Project Architect

During previous association with Perkins + Will

Program
LIBRARY

Status
COMPLETE

Awards + Recognitions
2021
Aia North Carolina - Honor Award
AIA nORTH carolina - Phil Freelon Public ARCHITECTURE AWARD

2018
AIA Delaware - Honor Award
American Libraries Association - Design Showcase

Credits

Library programs are revealed to the community along the Route 9 elevation to the west, while communal gathering spaces are located in the eastern wing to bridge to the planned Innovation Campus. The iconic, perforated metal skin—meant to recall “The Big Tree” that locals used to gather beneath—unites the various programs with a single gesture, filters sunlight like a tree canopy, and announces the library’s civic presence amongst a strip mall context.

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Durham, NC