The UW Libraries Offsite Shelving + UW Information School [iSchool] Retrofit project addresses long-standing space challenges experienced by both departments and enhances the iSchool’s on-campus collaboration, student engagement, and research related to librarianship.

The complexity of the project and its many stakeholders warranted a design-build delivery approach. GLY + SHKS Architects leveraged the collaborative nature of this delivery method to accommodate the needs of two user groups and a single budget. Given all the moving parts, the team completed the project in phases:

Phase 1: 32,000 square foot interior tenant improvement of an offsite historical building to create climate-controlled book storage for UW Libraries' collections. Includes a custom air handler unit and new static and mobile shelving.

Phase 2A: Relocate over 600,000 books from Allen Library South and the Tateuchi East Library auxiliary storage to the new offsite storage.

Phase 2B: Retrofit 16,000 square feet of vacated space within the Allen Library South 1^st floor for iSchool programs with connections to UW Libraries [e.g. digital and open scholarship, knowledge systems, and data science]. The new space features offices, collaboration and team building areas, and a kitchenette.

Construction occurred in occupied environments, requiring consistent communication with the UW and neighboring tenants and willingness to modify daily activities to minimize disruption.