After nine months of construction, full-scale renovation of the Young Research Library A level is nearly complete.
The project marks the first major renovation the library has undergone since it was built in 1971.
Blocks of file cabinets, soon-to-be-filled bookshelves and shiny new desks are all in place on the A level, which was previously used as a staffing space for processing and cataloguing the library’s three million volumes.
“We’re just a few weeks away from opening and are working now on finishing touches,” said Susan Parker, the deputy librarian and chief financial officer of the UCLA library system.
Collections of maps, microfilm and unbound periodicals are being moved from the first floor to the A level.
New equipment ““ including three or four big screen televisions ““ are in the process of being purchased and installed.
When complete, the project will introduce a new study area for students looking for a place to read or relax, Parker said.
The A level will also be home to the reference and bibliography staff, which is currently dispersed throughout the library’s six floors.
Parker said the renovation is much needed and long overdue.
“We very much understand that people are not satisfied with the quality of the YRL building and what it has to offer,” she said.
“It seems Spartan and outdated. Compare the environment in Powell Library with the one here.”
Parker added that the library’s impressive collection deserves a more inviting environment to match.
“This is a big deal, as the library has been basically untouched in 45 years. Almost everything is being changed,” she said.
Law student Dana Lee said the renovations will be a welcome addition to the Young Research Library.
Lee said she usually studies at the law school library. Right now the contrast between the two libraries is large.
“The law library looks a lot nicer than (Young Research Library). It has a lot of study space, too, and more technology,” Lee said.
But renovations to the A level “would be great,” she said, and added that she will be more likely to study at the Young Research Library after renovations are complete.
David He, a fourth-year history student, said he has no problem with the Young Research Library as it is.
“It’s awesome,” He said.
“There are always open computers and open chairs. And there’s a nice view.”
But He said he is looking forward to seeing the A level once renovations are complete.
Construction on the A level began in January. Ceilings and walls were torn down and rebuilt, and raised floors were added, said Eric Heggen, project manager for the construction portion of the renovation.
Heggen said he is very pleased with how construction has turned out.
“This is a normal kind of renovation, but part of what is exciting about it to me is that it will have a meaningful impact on the campus,” he said.
Soon after final touches to the A level are complete, the Young Research Library will begin renovations to its first floor.
Construction on the first floor is slated to begin in January 2010 and will finish about a year after that, Heggen said.
There are plans to add a new exhibit space and a stand-alone reference room, Parker said.
A cafe will be built inside the library, along with a large research commons, 15 group study rooms and a conference space that will accommodate 150 people.
Although the library’s first floor will be closed for construction during 2010, the rest of the library will still be accessible via a tunnel from the entranceway to the staircase, Parker said.
Renovations on both floors are expected to cost about $15 million, the majority of which is being paid for by an endowed fund to improve the Young Research Library.
The fund was established by an anonymous donor in honor of former UCLA chancellor Charles E. Young.