Photo by ElvertBarnes

Three firms have been selected to submit preliminary designs to renovate the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in downtown D.C.

The D.C. Public Library announced today that the firms — Mecanoo/Martinez + Johnson Architecture; Patkau Architects/Ayers Saint Gross with Krueck +Sexton; and STUDIOS Architecture/The Freelon Group — will submit two plans each: One for a stand-alone library and one for a mixed-use building with additional floors. The Ralph Nader-backed D.C. Library Renaissance Project plans to strongly oppose the latter idea, as they’re against public-private library partnerships.

The designs will be displayed in the Ludwig Mies van der Rohe-designed library, neighborhood libraries and online in early February, according to a release. The teams will explain the following at a February 15 meeting.

1. Explain the design and how it is unique, iconic, functional, welcoming and inviting.
2. Explain how library services are accommodated and how the design creates dynamic learning environment.
3. Explain how the design approach preserves the historic nature of the building, especially the first floor and exterior.
4. Explain how the team will navigate the District and federal government regulation processes.
5. Explain the design approach for additional floors and separate access to those floors.

In a Request for Qualifications earlier this year, DCPL said they were seeking “a design for the library of the future.”

“While we cannot know definitively what that future library will be, we do know that it will have great spaces for children and for adults, for individuals and for groups; space for physical and for virtual collections. We expect inspiring design that will accommodate great flexibility in library uses and in technology.”