Designing Libraries That Encourage Teens to Loiter (by TTW Contributor Justin Hoenke)

Image by Michael Moran and Rice+Lipka Architects

 Instead of siphoning teens off into different rooms (and locking away noisy activities), the space is airy and completely open. The openness means, among other things, that it only takes one or two librarians to monitor the entire space.

Rice says his team renovated the floor on the cheap, using paint and low-cost materials to fill the space. “Teens appreciate the rawness,” he says. “Rich materials might be a little bit of a turn-off.”

The key, he says, is a space without much security, where kids feel free to just hang out. “It makes teens feel as if they have free reign over the space,” he says. “They don’t feel like they’re under this intense adult scrutiny.”

It’s great to see this post over at The Atlantic focus on what I think is the most important part of a teen library…the atmosphere.  When you give teens a space that they can make their own and feel comfortable in, amazing things can happen.  As I move ahead with planning the space on the 2nd Floor of the Chattanooga Public Library, I will make sure that the teens on our Teen Advisory Board have a lot of input into how their space is laid out.

-Post by Justin Hoenke, Tame the Web Contributor