Update: The MLK Library Redesign May Have Residences

• May 21, 2014

by Lark Turner

Don’t stop handwringing quite yet: the new Martin Luther King Jr. library may still be getting residences. UrbanTurf was told by the MLK library’s spokesman that no uses for the space have been ruled out, despite an earlier report to the contrary from a spokeswoman at Martinez + Johnson Architecture. Preliminary conceptual renderings included a mixed-use addition to the building because the library asked the teams to do so.

In February, the library selected Martinez + Johnson Architecture and Dutch firm Mecanoo to design and execute the renovation of the space. This week, that team released new renderings showing how the interior of the library, as well as spaces underneath the overhanging facade, could be renovated or redesigned to invite more people to interact with the building. The renderings also include an addition to the building that sits on the roof, and the library has noted that the final product may be “mixed-use” to help fund the library itself. That may still include residences, though the rendering of an addition is conceptual for now.

The library’s spokesman told UrbanTurf that the library still plans to reach out to developers to find out whether anyone’s interested in building out the space above the library, whether for residential or commercial use.

Here are a few more of the renderings of the space:

Update: An earlier version of this post, based on information from Martinez + Johnson, suggested residences had been definitively ruled out of the library redesign. The library itself, Martinez + Johnson’s client, disputes that and says every option is still on the table.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/no_the_mlk_library_redesign_wont_have_residences/8510