City Council studies latest plan for Newport Beach library lecture hall project
A proposed library lecture hall project returned to the Newport Beach council dais Tuesday for discussion after nearly two years in conceptual development by committee.
Last talks of the project were in November 2019 when City Council took first looks at the lecture hall and provided some direction to city staff and the library lecture hall design committee and hired consultant and Newport Beach architect Bob Coffee.
At the time, the proposal was for a 7,000-square-foot, single story lecture hall that would include fixed auditorium-style seating for at least 275 people and a room for 50 portable overflow seats. It would also include a ticket booth, lobby, kitchen, “green room,” audio-visual control room and restrooms, plus a sloped floor for improved sight lines and advanced audio-visual equipment.
It is proposed to be located next to the library courtyard and positioned closely to the offices of library staff and the Friends Room, which opened with the Central Library in 1994.
Committee chair Jill Johnson-Tucker said estimates for the size and scale of the proposed library lecture hall now sits at around 9,514 square feet, though the number of fixed seats is expected to remain the same. The number of portable seats, however, was halved. This is due to regulatory reasons and because requests from the committee to design the building in such a way that it would limit any impositions on sight lines from seats, Johnson-Tucker said.
Original plans were to incorporate the maximum allowable slope under the Americans with Disabilities Act, but study of other auditoriums showed that slopes would not maximize sight lines.
As a result, the committee requested shallow steps be included in the plan. Also needed were ramps, access points to seats in the front, back and middle of the hall and a small lift, which increased the square footage of the building.
“But, there won’t be a bad seat in the house and it would be a shame to build this space to correct the poor sight lines in the Friends room only to still have mediocre sight lines,” said Johnson-Tucker.
It is still largely expected to include a ticket booth, kitchen, restrooms and other amenities sought when first proposed, none which exist in the 2,646-square-foot Friends Room. Proponents of the plan say that they’ve outgrown the space and that there is a need for better sight lines and audiovisual systems.
“The need for programming is a growth area in libraries nationwide and our library system is no exception. In 2009 and 2010, 28,000 people attended programs at the libraries. In 2018 and ‘19, that number increased to 70,000,” said Johnson-Tucker in the presentation Tuesday.
“And of the six peer libraries in the state of California, which are those libraries that share a similar population and budget to our library system — we’re the only one without an auditorium and lecture hall, although I’d venture to say we’re the one with the most robust programming,” said Johnson-Tucker.
Public works director Dave Webb said no action would be taken in light of the matter coming to council as a study session item, but that if the City Council liked the design, then city staff would bring that back for formal approval as soon as possible. Though, Webb said construction is a long ways off from going out to bid.
Webb said the original, tentative design in 2019 was estimated to cost around $8 million, whereas the current concept is approximately $12.8 million. But, it’s unclear what the total projected cost will be until the building is formally designed.
Councilman Will O’Neill said he and Mayor Brad Avery, who have been working on the project with the committee, felt the item needed to be brought back for discussion Tuesday because of the potential cost in relationship to the memorandum of understanding.
“I think it’s a great time to do this ... the economy’s been strong. Our revenues have been strong and any time we get a great project at a 50% off tag [because the city is sharing the cost of the project with the library foundation], I think that’s exceptional that we have this kind of support in this community for,” said Avery. He added this type of a project is one “that definitely brings people together.”
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