Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Boston, who has designed similar hammering men for various other cities. There are
taller and heavier models in Frankfurt, Germany, and Seoul, South Korea.
SEATTLE PUBLIC LIBRARY
LIBRARY
( 206-386-4636;
www.spl.org
;
1000 4th Ave; 10am-8pm Mon-Thu, 10am-6pm Fri & Sat,
noon-6pm Sun; ; Pioneer Sq)
F
There's not much chance you'll miss
glimpsing the Seattle Public Library, but it's worth going inside for a closer look. Con-
ceived by Rem Koolhaas and LMN Architects, the $165.5-million sculpture of glass
and steel was designed to serve as a community gathering space, a tech center, a read-
ing room and, of course, a massive book- storage facility. The main room, on Level 3,
has especially high ceilings, a teen center, a small gift shop and a coffee stand.
There's an underground level for parking. Near the top is the
Seattle Room
, a
12,000-sq-ft reading room with 40ft glass ceilings. It has amazing light, nice views of
downtown and seating for up to 400 people.
But the importance of the building's function certainly hasn't cost it anything in the
form department. In short, it looks brilliant, as striking as any other building in the city
including the Space Needle. The overall style of the place is as far from stodgy as you
can possibly get - sort of like when that sexy librarian finally takes off her spectacles.
Lemon-yellow escalators, hot-pink chairs and zippy wi-fi connections make for a mod-
ern, tech-friendly experience. There are also 132 research computers available in the
Mixing Chamber,
where librarians in teams help with in-depth research. And the
Book
Spiral
, spanning several floors, holds most of the library's nonfiction books, organized
by the Dewey Decimal Classification system with numbers marked on small mats on
the floor. Guests can take free one-hour group tours (for a schedule, see the website) or
a self-guided podcast tour.
BENAROYA CONCERT HALL
CONCERT HALL
( 206-215-9494; 200 University St; University St)
With a hefty bill of almost
$120-million in construction costs, it's no wonder the Benaroya Concert Hall, Seattle
Symphony's primary venue, oozes luxury. From the minute you step into the glass-en-
closed lobby of the performance hall you're overwhelmed by views of Elliott Bay; on
clear days you might be lucky enough to see the snowy peaks of the Olympic Range far
in the distance.
