September 2, 2005

City of San Jose holds community meeting for new Willow Glen library

Many express concerns about building’s design, artwork

By Ken Lotich
Times Intern

A large group of Willow Glen residents gathered for a community meeting at the Willow Glen Library Aug. 18. The gathering was organized by the city of San Jose, with District 6 Councilmember Ken Yeager in attendance.

“My Rabbits, Story in Clay” is a mural currently featured at the Willow Glen Library. The piece was created by local artist Nina Koepcke and several Willow Glen children. The artwork may have to be relocated once while the new library is constructed. Photo by Ken Lotich

Located at 1157 Minnesota Ave., the library is scheduled to undergo construction beginning in fall 2006 that is slated for completion by spring 2008.

The new single-story building will be 13,000 square feet with 45 to 60 parking spaces.

Richard Desmond of the San Jose Public Library Development Team said the number-one priority is to make the new library “reflect the Willow Glen community with a functional design.”

Possible construction issues
In his presentation Desmond pointed out five potential challenges of the construction: the lot is small and an odd shape; there’s no backside of the library; there’s no emergency vehicle access; there’s an oak tree in the back; and there’s a mural in the back patio area.

When Desmond mentioned the mural, local artist Nina Koepcke, who helped create it, immediately stood up and asked what are the plans for the piece. Desmond assured her that the mural would be preserved, and Koepcke asked to be consulted with any plans for the artwork, to which Desmond obliged.

The mural, “My Rabbits, Story in Clay,” was installed in the ground in the summer of 2000. Koepcke and several Willow Glen kids, ranging from 3 years old to high school age, created the mural.

The late Helen Owen was the inspiration for the project. Owen, who Koepcke described as a “wonderful, community-minded person,” succumbed to cancer years before. Owen was a former president of the Willow Glen Business and Professional Association.

For Koepcke, it made perfect sense to make the theme of the mural little fluffy rabbits because Owen loved them. Each section displays a different book on rabbits. “Peter Rabbit,” “Winnie the Pooh” and “The Velveteen Rabbit” are just a few of the 16 different pieces in the mural.

Many other members of the community spoke in support of Koepcke. The group was adamant about the mural being handed carefully.

“We knew we were going to have to lift it at some point,” Koepcke said after the meeting.

She also said she was worried about the oak tree, which stands just a few feet from the mural. “I have a concern for the whole environment here,” Koepcke said. “This tree is over 100 years old.”

Artwork
Jennifer Easton of the San Jose Public Art Program spoke about the art pieces for the new library. She said residents would be able to sign up for a committee, which would come together to pick an artist.

Many of the residents want a local artist to do the project, which Easton said would be possible if there was such a person in the pool of candidates.

Once an artist is selected, he or she will meet with the committee to discuss specifics.

Many concerns were expressed about the potential artwork. One person wants realistic art—another likes abstract.
Easton assured that the community that they would be able to discuss these ideas at future meetings. She said the most important thing was “to make the artwork last the legacy of the building.”

A sign-up sheet was passed around for the art committee, which many participants filled out.

Feedback
The group was allowed to express their ideas and concerns during the input session of the meeting.
While some feedback varied, one thing was universal—the residents want the city to retain the quaint, homey feel Willow Glen provides—and the new building should reflect that.

“Simple thinking is logical thinking,” commented Eduardo Farrington, who’s lived in Willow Glen for 21 years. The 28-year-old said he has been going to the library since he was 7. “My biggest concern is that the building will be demolished,” Farrington said after the meeting.

Nina Koepcke signs up for the committee that will pick the artist for the new Willow Glen Library. Photo by Ken Lotich

However, he is optimistic that the new library will become an inviting place, but the path to get to that point will be tough, he said.

“There will be a lot of old and new ideas that come together in the process,” Farrington said. “A lot of new people come into Willow Glen and think they know Willow Glen, but they don’t. Its charm is changing.”

Koepcke shared similar reservations.

“There’s bound to be disagreements,” Koepcke said. “There’s a bunch of different folks around here, all with different ideas. There’s bound to be many discussions.”

As the discussion continued, some residents said the new library should have large open windows with lots of seating.

They’d also like the library to have an organized book cataloging system, as well as more storage area.

Installing wireless Internet was also brought up, as well as putting in self-checkout machines.

Toward the end of the discussion, Desmond asked, “What is the single most important advice you’d like to give us?” Someone in the audience said the answer is simple, “It needs to fit Willow Glen.”

Many in the audience echoed his statement.

“… And someone will hate you no matter how hard you try,” another resident joked.

After the meeting concluded, residents were able to vote on their favorite of six different possible structure designs.

This is an informal survey to give the city an idea of which designs are most popular.

San Jose Public Library bond projects
In addition to the Willow Glen Library, many other San Jose libraries are under construction.

Desmond said the Rose Garden Branch and Cambrian Branch libraries would be open before Willow Glen closes. He recommends Willow Glen residents visit these branches to get their reading fixes while their branch is under construction.

The Rose Garden Branch Library is in the final stages of construction. It will be 19,000 square feet. It is tentatively scheduled to open in December.

The Cambrian Branch Library at 1780 Hillsdale Ave. will open in fall 2006. The new building will have 27,800 square feet of space.

On March 12, the Berryessa Branch Library located at 3355 Noble Ave., had its grand opening. Also this year, the Tully Community Branch Library at 880 Tully Road opened on Jan. 22.

Berryessa and Tully both have 24,000-square-foot buildings.

Pearl Avenue, Joyce Ellington and Edenvale Libraries are also in the preliminary discussions of construction in addition to Willow Glen.

For more information on the Willow Glen Library construction or any San Jose library branch, visit www.newsanjoselibraries.com.