COTTAGE GROVE PUBLIC LIBRARY

a place for the community and for history...

The Cottage Grove Public Library is a 20,000 square-foot project in the heart of Cottage Grove, Oregon. This public library  was designed to bring the community together visually and physically in the heart of their downtown.

Libraries are a place of borrowed and shared knowledge. So I created a warm, lofty place that echoed the words of an Indian Chief - "How can you buy and sell the earth? The warmth of the sky?". With this in mind, my library became about using sustainable materials and conscious design choices that brought the community together while telling the story of the Native Americans that used to live where Cottage Grove is now. I shaped a strong axis with large wooden CLT arches that allow light into every part of the space while creating a sense of walking though a forest. This axis created a strong circulation path and a feeling of awe.