North Regional Library Refurbishment

About the Program

Category: Community and Economic Development (Best in Category)

Year: 2023

Hennepin County’s North Regional Library Refurbishment project provided a wholesale reimagining of this 50-year-old building. North Regional is the second largest public library in Minneapolis. The redesign created a balance of quiet and collaborative zones, while improving programmatic adjacencies. Energy-efficiency upgrades brought a 21% reduction in electricity consumption, with a 1.6-year payback. Unique to the project was the role throughout design of youth from Juxtaposition Arts (JXTA), a nonprofit youth art and design education center in North Minneapolis. The architect subcontracted JXTA to provide community engagement and targeted design services, including patterns and motifs that were incorporated into wall coverings, window films, decorative fencing, bike racks, concrete paving and large-format sound absorption panels. The JXTA partnership enhanced community engagement in valuable ways. Many of the young consultants (aged 14 to 21) were BIPOC youth who live in the community the library serves. They were able to reach a younger and more diverse section of the community than typically reached by more traditional weekday evening community engagement meetings. Without their creativity and follow through, fewer voices would have been heard. The redesigned library is all the better for incorporating diverse perspectives.