In a wave of library construction across the metro area, this modest suburban branch draws patrons with flexibility, natural light and charm

We are living in a time of unprecedented library construction.

Across the Portland metro area, new library branches are being built, and existing ones are being expanded. Even as the federal government slashes non-military spending, local jurisdictions are embracing libraries as multifaceted community centers.

In Multnomah County alone, there are eight different branches in various stages of completion, from the ambitiously large new East County Library in Gresham (opening next year) and the recently-completed Holgate Library to expansions of the Albina, Belmont, Midland, North Portland, Northwest and St. Johns branches. Teeming with artwork and gathering spaces, they were designed by some of Portland’s best firms — Holst Architecture, Bora, Lever Architecture, Colloqate—and guided by extensive community input.

Clackamas County has been busy, too, building two new libraries: the Oak Lodge branch, due to open later this year, and the completed Gladstone branch. I was charmed by the latter when I visited it recently.

Designed by Seattle’s Johnston Architects and Portland’s Opsis, Gladstone is the smallest of any local library, at just 6,000 square feet. Yet oddly, that’s part of the attraction. More than any library branch I’ve visited, this one has the cozy intimacy of a neighborhood bookstore.

Located on the site of Gladstone’s former city hall near the confluence of the Clackamas and Willamette rivers, the library has a jewel-like presence. Expansive glass walls are shaded by a perforated metal sun shade wrapping the building’s southwest corner, cantilevering outward to form a distinctive entrance.

“It’s civically so important for this town,” Opsis founding partner Jim Kalvelage told me on a recent tour. “It’s a little library with big impacts.”

Inside, natural light pours in from every direction, thanks partly to a small glass-ensconced outdoor plaza and garden. This is one of several flexible spaces that can serve a variety of purposes. On the other side of the library is a large meeting room that emerged during community engagement as a priority. It can serve larger groups and is accessible even when the library is closed, thanks to a separate entrance.

Despite the modest square footage, the Johnston/Opsis design combines various spaces, including a dedicated teen area, a reading room, a cluster of public computers for Internet access, and administrative space for library staff. At the center, of course, are the book stacks, substantial but not so tall that you can’t still look across the room.

Originally, Clackamas County planned to build one large library rather than two, and because the Gladstone branch is smaller than Oak Lodge, this commission might not have stood out. “In the interview, I think other firms were talking more about the bigger library,” Kalvelage added, “but we spent a lot of time talking about how this one could be a kind of gem for them. That was what really resonated.”

On the weekday morning I visited, people were lined up at the door waiting to get in. Many of us associate Gladstone with McLoughlin Boulevard’s endless strip malls, car dealers and fast-food outlets. But this library is a welcoming landmark where anyone might want to spend time.