Haydon Burns Library
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The Haydon Burns Library in Jacksonville, Florida was named in honor of W. Haydon Burns, who served as Mayor of Jacksonville for 15 years, longest of any person. Burns also served an abbreviated 2-year term as Governor of Florida. The Burns Library replaced the Carnegie library, built in 1905 and designed by Henry John Klutho of New York. [1]
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[edit] History
When built in 1965 at a cost of $3.7 million, it was considered state of the art. The 126,000 ft2, 3-story building was designed by local architect Taylor Hardwick, who designed dozens of other buildings in Jacksonville starting in the mid-1950's including the Skinner Dairy chain and Friendship Fountain & Park. Hardwick and the building committee for the library’s trustees toured 6 new and significant libraries throughout the country, with the idea of incorporating the best ideas in library design and operation into Jacksonville’s new facility. John Hall Jacobs, a nationally known library consultant, also contributed to the design process. Mr. Hardwick worked on the library building's design over a span of five years, and his comprehensive plan specified all interior furnishings, graphics and the use of innovative, free-standing book shelves. He chose cheerful colors and limited the use of natural light.
[edit] Closing the book
The building served Jacksonville well, but by the mid-1990s, it was simply too small for the number of patrons using it. Furthermore, parking was very limited and the 30 year old wiring could not support the technology requirements for a modern library. Almost 300,000 people used the Burns library each year, 10% of the total users at all 22 locations of the Jacksonville Public Library. In September, 2000, Jacksonville voters approved the Better Jacksonville Plan, including funding for a new downtown library. The Haydon Burns Library checked out its last book on September 3, 2005. It took several weeks to move the library's half-million item collection down the street to the new facility, but on November 12, 2005, the new Main Library opened to the public. [2]
| Preceded by Carnegie Library (opened 1905) |
Downtown Public Library Haydon Burns Library 1965-2005 |
Succeeded by Main Library 2005 |
[edit] For sale
The transfer of the building from the city to a private owner was a long and winding road. The city requested bids on the property from developers while the new Main Library was still under construction and selected The Atkins Group as the winner in July, 2005. Atkins wanted to tear down the library to build condominiums but walked away from the deal after a financing dispute with the city. City officials then approached runner-up Peterbrooke Chocolatier, a local candy company that wanted to turn the building into a chocolate factory. That deal fell through because Peterbrooke's needs had changed and environmental clean-up would cost more than expected. The city briefly planned to keep the library for storage or repeat the bid process, but eventually negotiated a contract with the third choice developer, Main Branch LLC, whose $3.25 million bid for a mixed-use project would retain most of the building's character. [3] An agreement was reached and the city council approved the sale on November 15, 2006. The building was renamed, "122 Ocean" and renovation began in June, 2007. One fomponent of Main Branch's plan was to build two additional floors for condominiums, but that will be a later phase. The building will include a number of businesses including City Market, downtown's first urban grocery store. Negotiations are ongoing with prospective tenants, including Folio Weekly, a wine bar, a jazz club, a bar, two coffee shops, a cereal bar, a residential Realtor, a pair of film companies, a design & furniture store and a four-screen movie theater, according to Tony Allegretti, a Main Branch partner and investor. Some developers suggested tearing down the 1960's landmark, but Main Branch saw historical and financial value in its redevelopment.[4]
"One of the real motivations in this real estate cycle is you couldn't build this building for $20 million," Allegretti said. [5]
[edit] References
- ^ Jacksonville Public Library website: About the library
- ^ Florida Times-Union: Sep 3, 2005- Haydon Burns library closes to make way for new building
- ^ Florida Times-Union: Apr 24, 2007- Old Main Library becomes 122 Ocean
- ^ Florida Times-Union: Nov 30, 2005-Peterbrooke next up for library site
- ^ Florida Times-Union: Jan 14, 2008-What's going on with downtown?
