Amid the normally quite environs of the Main Library where staff members are prone to quip "shush" to noisy patrons, a Mariachi band broke into song one fine Wednesday morning.
After all, there was much to celebrate about!
The renovations at the downtown library - "The Great Main" (as newspaper columnist Herb Caen has been inclined to label it) - were now complete.
Now, book-lovers from around the city - flanked by a well-heeled gaggle of local politicians who were on hand to join in on the celebrations - were allowed to tour San Francisco's dazzling new showcase.
But not before the city librarian - noted at the unveiling - that initially the main library on Larkin Street opened to mixed reviews.
So, a team of architects and library staff sought to resolve - what many claimed - were oversights or outright design flaws.
Although the "Main" has been literally transformed, utmost care was taken to ensure the unique original architectural context in which it was built, was preserved.
The creative team in charge of the major renovations succeeded!
But, there were other issues to address, according to the architects from Pei Cobb Freed & Partners who oversaw the project.
"There were two main elements uppermost in our minds. Natural light and books."
For example, some criticized the fact bookshelves in plain view housed voluminous tomes, which negatively impacted the aesthetics.
But, one official was quick to point out the reason for the obvious display.
"The innovative architectural idea bootstrapped the entrance to the Library - and thus - defrayed the cost of replacing books that were stolen in the past at the old library due to poor design."
Valid point!
In honor of the occasion, the Mayor turned up to cut the red ribbon, but waved off the key speaker when first asked to approach the podium.
"I'm not ready yet," he uttered almost under his breath as he reviewed some papers in his hand.
It was one of those awkward pregnant moments that hung thick in the air.
Undoubtedly, Gavin Newsom is not referred to as the - "Green Mayor" - without good reason.
Wise old sage "Master Julian" once opined:
"It is not polite to insult host while a guest in his house."
In spite of the Mayor's rude behaviour - a handful of city workers, library staff, and local officials strode proudly up to the microphone in his stead first - to contribute a few insightful comments about the renovaton process, the fundraising support efforts, and a myriad of complex issues that had to be met "head on" to meet the challenges of the renovation process.
Thanks to the new first-floor renovations - 76,000 books (normally held in storage on the third floor) - will now be available to the public and easily accessed.
A new automated sorting system will also speed up the process of locating, ordering, and checking out books.
A spanking new Audiovisual Center also boasts an impressive array of CDs, DVDs, and other non-print materials.
Steve Coulter - a former member of the Library Commission - was proud to note that in spite of the fact the construction was a multi-year project, "there were no closures or any inconveniences to the public".
When Mayor Newsom finally stood before the excited (and at times giddy) book-lovers kibitzing in the elegant foyer, he was brief and to the point.
"We are the envy of cities across the Nation. Although there have been closures in other cities due to a lack of funding, San Franciscans came through with the money."
Librarian Luis Herrera's associate added poignantly:
"We're keeping the dream alive."
Part of that lofty aspiration was achieved because of generous donors.
For example, Bill and Melinda Gates provided funding for all the computers in the first floor Internet-access section of the Main Library.
"The goal," one staff member added, "was to enhance service to the public and enlarge upon the user experience."
It is estimated that there are two million visitors to San Francisco's main library each year; so, the additional facilities are a God-send, obviously.
With little more fanfare, the whole kit 'n kaboodle - guests, politicians, and members of the press who jockeyed about for key photo ops - rushed forward to the cordoned-off area where the Mayor (with a broad smile on his face and a wave of his elegant hand) cut the red ribbon and beckoned the anxious lookie-loo's inside.
"Very spiffy", "Well-organized", "Wow, this is great" - were some of the comments I overheard as I embarked on a little tour through the newly-opened library wing.
Meanwhile, the Mayor was engaged in carefree open dialogue with the citizenry, a-hop-and-a-skip away with no apparent political agenda in mind.
The Library was built twelve years ago and is a stunning piece of architecture designed by the design firm Pei Cobb Freed and Partners.
James Ingo Freed was the main designer.
Originally, the public library was built to complete San Francisco's Civic Center.
The Library's modernist design echoes the materials and massing of the neighboring sym
metrical facades at the Beaux-Arts institutions fronting on the Civic Center, while the two other facades opposite, make a contemporary response to the adjacent commercial district.
Because the Main Library allows for passage into and through the building and out to the opposite side of the full-block site - it is both a destination and a link - connecting the modern city with its cultural core.
"It's a bridge between the people of San Francisco and the institutions that serve and enrich them," explained the architects.
A stunning open staircase and a five-story atrium - 60 feet in diameter - provide a luminous hub of orientation. In addition, a stunning glass-enclosed periodicals reading room - suspended above - further helps to draw light into the core of the 300' x 200' building.
Novel bridges link precincts that provide access to advanced online information systems and three million books on open/closed stacks.
Other features include a public atrium, reading room, a special rare book collection, an auditorium with 620 seats, public meeting rooms, exhibition spaces, a roof garden, café, bookstore, and art commissioned by Alice Aycock Stair, Nayland Blake, Ann Hamilton, Ann Chamberlain, and Charley Brown.
An outstanding ceiling mural, by Mark Evans, gazes down from the main ceiling.
As Carl T. Rowan once noted:
“The library is the temple of learning, and learning has liberated more people than all the
wars in history."
wars in history."
