Modernization/Reconstruction

Award of Merit

Rio Linda District Library Media Centers

Rio Linda Union School District

Lionakis Beaumont Design Group

With a plan and a purpose, Rio Linda Union School District told nineteen school sites, “You can build your own school library media center…and for only $250,000 per school!”  The planning process was developed to provide a design framework, gaining consensus on the philosophy for the library media centers and developing standardization of equipment and furnishings.  With the introduction of movable shelving and furniture, the “build your own library media center” program led to virtually endless possibilities.

Working with two reclaimed classrooms in 30 to 50-year old schools and an average construction budget, including furniture and equipment, of $250K per site, the design emphasized focal points, furniture and equipment.  Color accents, fun carpets and technology such as laptop carts and movable LCD projectors complete the design solution.

The Library Media Centers projects were so embraced by the community that they passed a local bond to build them.  The community and physical environments are fostered by placing the Centers on the campus in areas that invite community use and become central to student life.  The ultimate sustainable design is to re-use and re-claim space.  With declining enrollment at many of the affected schools, the library and media centers were created within existing underutilized spaces.  In addition, the use of carpet tiles with high recycled content, long life and easy repair and replacement diminish the impact on landfills.

Jurors said this is a wonderful little project that provided an affordable solution to 19 different campuses.  It will be a vast improvement to the schools where these projects are built, particularly for providing a modern library and media center.  The school district should be credited for conceptualizing this kind of idea for giving options for dealing with library space planning.