Preservation Online: Preservation 911 Archives: Modern Library Teardown

From Preservation Online, the online magazine of the National Trust for Historic Preservation

www.preservationonline.org

Modern Library Teardown in Southern California

Readers seek help for preservation emergencies / May 28, 2002

Dear Preservation 911,

Mid-century modern isn't everyone's favorite architectural style, but it happens to be mine. A threatened 1956 public library is one of the best representations of modernism in the City of Monrovia, Calif.

Why is this building so special? It has spacious glass windows, a post-and-beam roof line, foldaway wooden curtain dividers, a modular design to allow for future expansion, and materials new for the time period, such as Lucite, automatic doors, and other conveniences that we take for granted today. The new man-made materials were blended into the natural beauty of the San Gabriel Valley; landscapers used many new plants from the famous Monrovia Nursery Company, which was located a few street away. The library's architecture captures the beauty of the surrounding historic Library Park, with its 100-year-old oak trees and wide Mayten Fig tree. Prefabricated concrete panels known as "Switzer Panels" line most the structure; the money-saving panels allowed for more resources for the building's interior.

Architects Eugene Fickes and Jay Dewey Harnish went on to create numerous other libraries in Southern California. By coincidence, their other creations in Riverside, Ontario, and Alhambra are also threatened. Both men created public buildings that are still used today without much fanfare from historians: hospitals, schools, an airport, and industrial buildings. Yet these buildings should have some fanfare, especially the Monrovia Public Library, which was the first building that launched their careers in working with city governments.

Why is the Monrovia Public Library threatened when modernism has become so popular in Los Angeles County? A new Library Bond Act has enabled librarians to apply for money to build a new library. Monrovia, population 50,000, has a City Council that is determined to get a new building. Many libraries that are 50 years or older are threatened by the passage of this bond. The City of Monrovia is trying to speed up the approval process of the site's Environmental Impact Report to better compete for the first wave of funding. Comments from the public on the EIR can only be received before May 28th.

Library Park is threatened to become the "Library Parking Lot," as the proposed library has threatened to more than double its size, according to the EIR. The support by the community has been favorable to expansion to the existing building, but the EIR fails to discuss that particular option. A Web site has even popped up in support of keeping the library. The City of Monrovia has already denied the possibility of landmarking it because the building is not 50 years old. Isn't 46 close enough?

The EIR's summary says to make way for the bulldozers and on with the demolition. Does anyone have any last-minute ideas about how to make a unique city library in a park not look like a box store in a parking lot?

Sincerely,

Katharine Hummer
Azuza, Calif.

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