Residents Leery of Richmond Library Rebuild

By Carol Dimmick

Richmond District residents sent library officials back to the drawing board when they unanimously rejected two plans to expand and remodel the Richmond Branch Library - plans that would dramatically change the way the neighborhood facility operates.

The meeting was the first time the community got a peek at what could be the first of many proposals to remodel the seismically unsound structure, located at 351 Ninth Ave.

One of 26 branch libraries in line for a facelift as a result of a $106 million bond measure approved by San Francisco voters in November 2000, the library is in poor shape.

According to city engineers, the roof of the library could collapse in a major earthquake and the electrical and plumbing systems need a major overhaul. It also lacks basic safety systems and controls.

Marilyn Thompson, program manager for the SF Public Library, told residents the remodel gives the city an opportunity to plan for a facility that will have to meet the needs of the community for the next 50 years.

Thompson presented two plans that would expand the footprint of the library from 9,000 square feet to 14,000 square feet. Most of the new space would be used for a small new teen area, an enlarged children's room, new tutoring rooms and a new entrance. A new elevator and maintenance rooms would occupy the additional space.

One plan featured a two-story addition to the back of the building at 10th Avenue. A second design added wings at the sides of the existing structure. But both plans eliminated features that a majority of the 70 residents who attended the meeting clearly said they want to preserve: separate libraries for children and adults with two circulation desks.

Attendees also said they would not approve of a design that trivializes features of the 1914 Carnegie-style architecture by moving the library's entrance from Ninth Avenue to the side of the building.

Supervisor Jake McGoldrick called the Ninth Avenue entrance an "uplifting experience" and urged that it be retained as the main entrance and not just preserved as an historic feature in the new plan.

Other suggestions included more shelf space for books, integrating open space more fully into the project, a larger area for teens and more staff participation in community meetings.

In their haste to make a June submission deadline to compete for $350 million in state matching funds, library officials clearly hit a nerve with some residents.

"The library is doing false outreach to the community on this project," resident Wayne Anderson said.

City librarian Susan Hildreth said that plans could be submitted for two later funding deadlines if residents wanted more time to consider other options.

"We want to get in the first round because they are giving out the most money, but we aren't bound by the June 14 deadline if the community wants to take it a little slower," she said.

Hildreth explained that state funds could pay for up to 65 percent of the $7.2 million it will cost to remodel the library.

By the end of the meeting it was clear that most residents wanted to preserve the basic concept of the original structure.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it," one resident summed it up.