Architectural Resources Group completed the design for the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

ARG served as the prime architect – managing and coordinating all design and construction document preparation tasks and construction administration services for the project. After various building expansions in the 1950s and 60s that expanded the library collections underground, the unreinforced masonry (URM) building was due for a seismic retrofit. The structural work triggered mandatory code upgrades for disabled access and fire safety.

Visitors would previously enter the library by walking down a narrow exterior flight of smooth travertine stairs to the cramped card catalog room. After the site manager slipped and fell on the slick steps after a rainy day, it was clear that the way people entered the building needed to change. A new entry pavilion constructed of steel, brick and glass was envisioned to solve the access problems. By providing a two-stop hydraulic elevator and grand staircase, the pavilion opened up the basement to an ample lower lobby and orientation room, linking the new structure to the existing one. The high steel glass windows that wrap the stairwell provide improved daylighting to the lower level. A gender neutral ADA compliant restroom is housed in the new entrance building.

Architect: Architectural Resources Group
Design Team: Stephen Farneth, Justine Leong, James McLane III, Gary Koll, Sarah Devan
Contractor: Walsh Construction
Photography: Stephen Schafer