Photograph by Dan Duncan
This November, St. Louis County residents will vote to approve the St. Louis County Public Library's bond issue, which includes its 10-year facilities master plan. The proposed six-cent tax increase will fund the renovation of four libraries, upgrades to nine, and the construction of new buildings to replace eight current locations. Of the buildings slated for demolition, one notable inclusion was the Lewis and Clark branch in Moline Acres.
What makes this North County library such an outlier among the others is its historical significance. Built in 1963, the midcentury modern building was designed by prominent St. Louis architect Frederick Dunn.
Dunn—who studied architecture at Yale alongside Eero Saarinen—recruited Robert Harmon, an artist at Emil Frei Stained Glass, to design a series of windows depicting scenes from Lewis and Clark's famed journey among red, yellow and white geometric patterns. The size of the windows create a unique atmosphere both outside and inside, where natural light is prevalent.
According to Modern-STL board member Lindsey Derrington, consulting firm Aaron Cohen Associates did not take historical significance into consideration while writing the facilities plan. Modern-STL, a regional advocacy group for modern architecture, called for action to save the building last month in a post to their blog.
While the library's plan does not take historical significance into account, it does consider usage and circulation data. The St. Louis County Public Library system is being used now more than ever, and according to the master plan, the new building at this location would add 4,000 square feet to the current 16,000—space which would be used for “new children’s services, teen spaces, computer training and new technologies for patron use.” Derrington says an alternative to demolishing the building would be for the library utilize the 15,000-square-foot floor plan proposed for the Meramec Valley branch, which serves a comparable population. Two other locations, Jamestown Bluffs and Samuel Sachs, both serve slightly larger populations at 16,500 and 16,800 square feet, respectively.
The library's master plan also states that for visitors to some of the region’s older libraries, “the overall impression is of aging buildings.” Derrington says age per se is not a legitimate reason for demolition.
“There have been so many upgrades to this building since 2000. There's a new parking lot, a new roof, new signage, new furniture, and the building itself—it's in great condition,” Derrington says. “You don't get the impression it's falling down, you get the impression it wasn't built five years ago.”
The St. Louis City Public Library’s Central Branch, currently undergoing a $70 million renovation, is more than a century old—and has been preserved throughout the years because of its beautiful design and historical significance. (The Lewis and Clark Branch, like the city’s Central branch, is also eligible to be listed with the National Register of Historical Places.)
If the $108 million bond issue passes, it's likely that this building will be replaced in the next four years. Modern-STL board members have been writing Library Director Charles Pace in opposition of the library's plan. Derrington says the feedback has been relatively positive, and Pace has even suggested adaptive reuse of the windows or building itself. Derrington suggests those in favor of preserving the building, contact Pace or St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley.
“The more input [Pace] hears from the community, the more he's up against the wall to at least consider reusing the building,” she says. “Sometime sending emails seems like futile exercise. But they will listen.”
The Lewis and Clark Branch of the St. Louis County Library is located at 9909 Lewis and Clark Boulevard (slcl.org). For more information on Modern-STL, visit their website, modern-stl.com.
