LJC’s holistic civic design emphasizes flexibility, community engagement and a variety of learning and gathering spaces for diverse users

Lamar Johnson Collaborative (LJC), a national full-service architecture firm, has announced the completion of the Clark Family Branch Library for the St. Louis County Library (SLCL) district. Located at 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd. in the inner-ring suburb of Ladue, the two-story building spans over 78,000 square feet and currently stands as the largest branch in the SLCL system.

LJC’s design for the new Clark Family Branch features a contemporary expression of stone, glass, wood and steel elements in a warm and inviting color palette. The design solution, which emphasizes open, flexible spaces, high ceilings and ample access to natural light through the building, draws inspiration from its natural surroundings as well as the district’s 19 other library branches. Envisioned as SLCL’s crown jewel, the Clark Family Branch is the final branch to be designed as part of its system-wide “Your Library Renewed” program.

“The role libraries play in their communities has evolved from austere places to quietly read or study into vibrant, multipurpose civic hubs where people from all walks of life gather, interact, create and collaborate,” said Amy Luchun, principal and higher education market leader at LJC. “The Clark Family Branch was designed to be a modern yet timeless embodiment of the trends of multifunctionality and community engagement and represents the very best of what a modern library branch can be.”

In addition to providing traditional reading, private study spaces and quick access to collections, the Clark Family Branch contains various meeting and event spaces, age-specific areas offering creative and hands-on learning experiences, and diverse community-based services. The branch’s interactive Stephany and Richard Kniep Children’s Space features a playhouse, built-in reading nooks, a magnetic gear wall and educational touch-screen games inspired by the hands-on nature of interactive children’s museums. The Unity Foundation Teen Space provides tech-focused creative amenities such as the Object Computing creative lab with a 3-D printer, an audio recording studio, a video recording studio with green screen and a video game room. Outside the self-contained studios are stationary computers and moveable worktables, enabling small- and large-group hands-on collaboration within the main studio space.

SLCL is known for hosting more author events than any other library system in the country, in addition to a robust schedule of other programs, community meetings and special events. As a result, the LJC team prioritized flexible spaces that could accommodate varying crowd sizes for simultaneous events. The 800-seat multipurpose Post Event Space & Plaza offers multiple room configurations to support the branch’s active calendar.

The Emerson History & Genealogy Center – one of the largest in the country – offers family research stations, a memory lab for recording oral histories, and equipment for digitizing old photos and other media. The small business center provides resources to support current and aspiring entrepreneurs, such as business-oriented education and programming. These reservable spaces can be used for group collaboration within flexibly sized rooms while soundproof rooms are provided to host virtual meetings.

Thoughtful planning went into the placement of the Clark Family Branch on its nearly 8-acre site. The building’s design and orientation considers direct and indirect access to outdoor spaces, including a walking path, reading garden and second-level balcony designed to support library programming. The outdoor garden also weaves through the parking and around the building, ensuring an environment that  prioritizes safe ingress and egress for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

“LJC’s ‘Integrated By Design’ philosophy combines expertise and ideas from the firm’s architecture, interior and landscape teams in a holistic, collaborative process,” said Tyler Meyr, executive director at LJC. “Despite containing so many individual components serving diverse functions, the Clark Family Branch reads as one cohesive and inclusive design through its materials, commitment to wellness and sustainability, connections to nature and integration with the surrounding landscape.”

The branch programming and design was enhanced through a $6 million donation to the St. Louis County Library and the St. Louis County Library Foundation from the Bob Clark Family, founder and executive chairman of Clayco, a full-service design-build firm that provides architecture, engineering, construction and real estate services. LJC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Clayco.

“Cost-effectiveness remains top-of-mind, so it was important for the entire team to act as responsible stewards of public money and donor resources while still being able to deliver an inspired, aspirational community asset that neighbors feel proud to call their library,” added Meyr.

The St. Louis County Library Clark Family Branch replaces a previous facility that for over 60 years combined library branch operations and the district’s headquarters together. To best serve the needs of the community and the district, an operational decision was made to consolidate branch library functions within the Clark Family Branch and move administrative functions to a new building, also designed by LJC, and located near the intersection of Clayton and Spoede roads in the neighboring Frontenac suburb.

“The opening of the Clark Family Branch is a huge milestone for the St. Louis County Library District,” said Kristen Sorth, St. Louis County Library director & CEO. “For the past 10 years, we have modernized and improved every branch in the Library District as part of the Your Library Renewed campaign. Our buildings truly reflect our Library System – they are welcoming, bright, dynamic, comfortable and fun. Libraries move people and communities forward.”

About Lamar Johnson Collaborative:

Lamar Johnson Collaborative (LJC) is a Chicago-based full-service design and architecture firm that provides integrated delivery and full turnkey solutions across multiple industries. LJC’s services include architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, planning and urban design, sustainability and technical/quality assurance. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Clayco, a full-service, real estate, architecture, engineering, design-build and construction firm. Though LJC works closely with companies in the Clayco family of brands, more than half of its business is with outside developers and general contractors.

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