Homer Public Library

The Homer Public Library is located at 500 Hazel Avenue in Homer, Alaska. It serves the communities of the Southern Kenai Peninsula from Ninilchik to the south side of Kachemak Bay.[1]

Homer Public Library
Library main entrance.
CountryUnited States
TypePublic
Established1940s
LocationHomer, Alaska
Coordinates42.145714°N 84.808499°W / 42.145714; -84.808499
Collection
Size45,000[1]
Access and use
Population served12,000[1]
Other information
DirectorDave Berry
Websitewww.cityofhomer-ak.gov/library
Map

The library, a department of the City of Homer, has six full-time and three part-time staff. The current director of the library is Dave Berry.[2] Previous directors include Ann Dixon[3] and Helen Hill.[4] The library is aided by an advisory board and Friends of the Homer Library.

History

Interest in a public library in Homer began in the 1940s when the Homer Women's club set up a library in an old school building. The town had previously been contacted by Anthony Dimond, the Alaska Territory Delegate in the House of Representatives, who offered to help provide the town with books if a library building was built.[5] By 1950 the library was fully constructed at a cost of $1,500.[6] The Anchorage Daily News described it as a "simple green cabin of about 600 square feet with a storm porch."[7] With the help secured from Dimond, the library received $50 annually from the territory.[5]

In 1978, the library became a department of the City of Homer, and the following year was replaced by a 3,500 square foot building on Pioneer Ave.[5]

In 1987, the library introduced a program in which they accept manuscripts from the community, publish them, and display them for checkout by library patrons.[8] Termed the "Top Drawer Collection", books ranging from 50 to 500 pages are presented by the library each year during National Library Week.[9]

Building
Each metal fish on this wall is engraved with the name of a donor to the library’s construction costs.

Construction of a new library building started in 2003 and ended in 2006.[10] The Anchorage Daily News described it as "an architectural sensation." [7] It opened to the public on September 16, 2006,[11][12] covers 17,000 feet and cost a total of $8.8 million to construct.[13] It was funded primarily through Government grants ($3,813,000), a 30-year USDA Rural Development loan ($2,200,000) and various foundation grants ($1,336,000).[14]

Reading areas at the east end of the library feature floor-to ceiling glass

The building was awarded LEED Silver certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. The library was the third certified LEED building in Alaska, the second to achieve the silver rating, but the first public building in the state to earn this silver certification for "materials, indoor air quality, performance, energy use and overall environmental impact."[15][16] LEED certification encourages the use or reuse of local materials which meant, among other things, that an old gym floor from the Kenai High School was used for countertops.[17]

The architecture firm, ECI/Hyer, has received several awards for the building:[18]

  • 2007 Honor Award, AIA Alaska Chapter
  • 2007 Member's Choice Award, AIA Alaska Chapter State Convention
  • 2007 Best Non-Residential Award, AIA Alaska Chapter State Convention
  • 2007 Judge's Choice: Community Beautification Award, Homer Chamber of Commerce
  • 2006 People's Choice Award, AIA Alaska Chapter State Convention

In 2005, the library was investigated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Water Act for failing to apply for a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit.[19]

References
  1. "About the Library | City of Homer Alaska Official Website". www.cityofhomer-ak.gov. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
  2. Armstrong, Michael (17 April 2019). "City of Homer hires new library director". Homer News. Sound Publishing. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  3. New librarian is also author of children’s books | Homer Tribune Archived 2013-12-03 at the Wayback Machine
  4. Helen Hill: A life with libraries 04/27/11
  5. "Library History | City of Homer Alaska Official Website". www.cityofhomer-ak.gov. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
  6. "Alaska Briefs: Homer". Daily Sitka Sentinel (Volume Xi, Number 169). May 19, 1950. Retrieved 2 May 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Dunham, Mike (30 December 2007). "Architects honor year's top projects". Anchorage Daily News. McClatchy - Tribune Business News. ProQuest 457108111.
  8. "On the Shelf". Fairbanks Daily News Miner (Vol. XCI, No. 61). March 14, 1993. Retrieved 2 May 2018 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  9. "Library Gives Homer Manuscripts 'Top Drawer' Treatment". Fairbanks Daily News Miner (Vol. XCIV, No. 68). March 11, 1996. Retrieved 2 May 2018 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  10. Notable Buildings, Notable Architects - Alaska Business Monthly - February 2012 - Anchorage, AK
  11. Campbell, Melissa (15 October 2006). "Big thinking keeps small architectural firm fresh". Alaska Journal of Commerce. 30 (42). ProQuest 219655767.
  12. Library doors swing open to crowd of 1,500 | Homer Tribune Archived 2013-12-02 at the Wayback Machine
  13. About the Library | City of Homer Alaska Official Website
  14. Alaska Libraries and Museums: A Review Prepared for: The Foraker Group
  15. "Inside Alaska business". Anchorage Daily News. 20 April 2007. ProQuest 255495981.
  16. FYI | Homer Tribune Archived 2010-11-24 at the Wayback Machine
  17. LEEding the way in Alaska: more and more, Alaska is seeing 'green' in its building designs | Alaska Business Monthly | Find Articles
  18. ECI/Hyer Architecture - Homer Public Library
  19. United States Environmental Protection Agency: EPA Proposes Penalty Against City of Homer Public Library for Clean Water Act Violations
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