The original public library for the City of Social Circle was constructed in 1984. By 2017, it was in need of updates to its interiors, functionality, and services for the community. The existing building size and configuration was not sufficient to house the stacks and functions its Board of Trustees felt would best serve their community. They received funding from the State of Georgia and hired Architectural Collaborative to achieve their vision.
The existing structure consisted of a large hipped roof volume with a hyphen connecting a smaller gabled volume to the west. The original entrance to the building was located in the hyphen. Given the existing conditions, our solution to the expansion was to mirror the hyphen and smaller wing and relocate the main entrance to the large central volume.
To allow natural light into the center of the space and bring greater scale and presence to the exterior architecture, we added a new cupola to the existing hip roof. The cupola is supported in the interior with new columns and walls which define an open central reading and lounge area.
Large openings were also created into the east and west wings for greater visibility between interior spaces. This openness aids the librarians in better serving the patrons of the library.
Children’s programming is central to the mission of the library. We sought to design playful and inspired spaces for children to read, learn, explore, and create.
