The new Library Repository Facility is proposed as an approximately 140,000-gross-square-foot facility to be located adjacent to US-23. The facility will support the University of Michigan Library, one of the top academic research libraries in North America, which stewards more than 15 million volumes, one of the finest collections in the world.
With physical collections currently housed in multiple locations across campus, several of them leased, the Library is challenged to accommodate its growing collections and preserve them in secure, environmentally controlled spaces. The new facility will establish a permanent, centralized active hub to process, digitize, preserve, and provide access to university collection materials. It will include an initial collection capacity of approximately 8 million volumes and will be designed to allow for future modular expansions as needed for the Library or other campus collections. The facility will bring together for the first time, six functions and up to 100 staff, librarians, and student employees who steward highly valued library collections. The project eases existing space shortages and creates an opportunity to eventually re-envision and transform valuable campus spaces for more active community use. The scope of this project includes the architectural, electrical, and mechanical work necessary to accomplish these improvements. There will be no impact on parking from this project.
