A new library in the center of Perugia

Abstract

When the town of Perugia – a medium sized arts town and county town as well, with two universities, a rich cultural milieu and a strong library network – launched a project for the creation of a new public library, it was clear that a number of complex issues was going to turn up: the coexistence (or non-coexistence) in a single space of both historic and public library; the relationship between municipality and university; the most suitable architectural solutions for integrating a really new library in a historical building; the library's economic sustainability; the accessibility of the building, situated in the town centre; the dialectic between functionality and wow factor; the connection of the new library with the existing library network and the other cultural institutions; the relevance (or irrelevancy) of the library collection in today's public library.
Actually these issues can be seen rather as an opportunity than as an obstacle: they will force all the sides involved in the project to find original and groundbreaking solutions, and will hopefully lead to an innovative library in every respect: librarianship, architecture and town planning.