Wellsburg Public Library

Wellsburg, IA | Government + Cultural

ISG designed the new Wellsburg Public Library to provide open, naturally lit spaces for community members to read and gather.

Having initially planned on using footings from a previous building, the Wellsburg community needed to change course for its new library after the existing structure was deemed unsuitable.

The library for Wellsburg started out with the design criteria of fitting on and reusing existing footings from a building that was to be demolished. Upon further investigation, the existing conditions were determined to be unsuitable for the new building, requiring the existing structure to be completely demolished. A new library was designed to fit on this limited downtown Main Street site. The building design incorporated a center-vaulted ceiling that ran from front to back, having large peaked floor-to-ceiling glass at each end. In the center of the library space was a curved reception desk with direct views over the entire library, as well as a floor-to-ceiling curved glass window overlooking a green area outside. An open reading and gathering area was placed in front of this window, with a slightly more private adult reading area nestled in a corner with a fireplace and casual seating. A separate children’s area was also created within the library space with smaller sized furniture and smaller stacks for books. A full-sized community room, kitchen, and a tornado shelter were incorporated into the design and helped to diversify its utilization by the entire Wellsburg community.