Appoquinimink Community Library
Middletown, DE
Client
Size
Completion Date
Architect
Architect of Record
Our role
New Castle County Library
26,500 square feet
2022
Perkins&Will
Tetra Tech
Kenneth Luker served as Design Principal during previous association with Perkins&Will.
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All photographs © Mark Herboth Photography LLC unless otherwise indicated.
The Appoquinimink Community Library is a 26,500 sf, single-story branch library for the New Castle County Library system. Its large footprint and massing are organized into a series of parallel bars that evoke the scale and texture of its 18c historic context. The spatial character of the interiors continues this theme with vaulted ceilings and light monitors. The program includes traditional children, teen, and adult sections as well as a maker lab, recording studio, and community room. Two entrances – one oriented to pedestrian dominated Main Street and the other to on-site parking – create a convenient, welcoming experience from multiple directions.
The Middletown community is located at the midpoint of a historic overland portage route between the Appoquinimink Creek and Bohemia River. The design draws inspiration from this historic journey and the scale of the community’s architectural heritage that includes many cupolas and belfies, lit at night to aid travelers on their journey. Located along one edge of the historic community, the library mediates between the intimate, historic downtown and the more expansive, new growth to the east of town – a crossroads on our journey of discovery.
The parallel graining of the library’s massing telegraphs beyond the building to organize the site and landscape design with entry walks, parking, a play area for children, rain garden, and bus shelter. The site design also provides safe pedestrian walking paths to connect with nearby schools, municipal ball fields, and a recreation center.
