October 21, 2020 by Thomas Raveney, PE, Electrical Design Director, Associate
DBR is pleased to be working with Lake | Flato Architects on a new 4,000 square-foot all-purpose community gathering/meeting space addition to the Medina Community Library. DBR provided mechanical, electrical, plumbing services for the Medina Community Library Meeting Hall which is intended to become the “new living room” for the Medina community. In addition to energy-efficient HVAC design, DBR provided conservation-minded plumbing fixtures to reduce the volume of clean water used and LED lighting with energy-conserving lighting controls.
The building will accommodate a wide range of uses and events and has been designed as three meeting halls in one. Two individual meeting spaces are separated by a central circulation hall, and when necessary the walls of the hall can be completely opened to combine these two meeting spaces into one large meeting space. The varying sizes of the three meeting hall spaces allow the building to provide the flexibility to accommodate large and small group gatherings.
In addition to the new meeting space, the existing library will be supported through the new Meeting Hall’s sustainability goals, which make the most of every opportunity. A photovoltaic array on the roof of the new addition will provide energy for both the new meeting hall and the existing library whenever the meeting spaces are not in use. Rainwater collected from the roof will be used to irrigate the community gardens surrounding the project. Furthermore, an energy monitor display will act as a visual educational tool, helping to provide new opportunities for learning about renewable energy.