Multnomah County Library System, Portland, OR
13,000 sf library, 44,000 sf housing
Completed in 2002

Recognizing and supporting goals for increasing density in Portland's Hollywood neighborhood, Multnomah County viewed the replacement of the existing Hollywood Branch Library as an opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of mixed-use in-fill development in a mature urban neighborhood that is well served by transit. THA designed a building that makes a civic statement for the library and provides quality design and a unique identity for the mixed-income housing.

The building celebrates the history of the Hollywood District - a wall along the east side of the library reading room honors the work of local children's book writer Beverly Cleary. Responding to the unique characteristics of the Hollywood neighborhood, the colors of the materials reinforce both the civic and residential scale of the building. The building is designed with a series of setbacks to ease the transition from the single-family neighborhood to the higher-density commercial district.

The Hollywood Library received a 2002 Governor's Livability Award, which recognizes exemplary projects that reinforce Oregon's quality of life and support its transportation and land use goals. It was also featured in Metropolis Magazine, praised for being "an energy-efficient mixed-use library complex" and being "the latest in the region's well-known and often pioneering efforts to prevent sprawl and increase urban density."