Cruzen-Murray Academic Library

The Cruzen-Murray Library is a campus gateway that has become a signature building for the College of Idaho and a leading example of the twenty-first-century transformation of the library building.  This new library contains 60,000 square feet of enclosed floor area over three levels and is a light-filled, inviting environment with ample opportunities for exterior views.

The prominent entry features a curved sculptural stair leading visitors to the primary reading room that is placed on the second floor overlooking the dynamic two-story entry space.  A convex cedar board ceiling over the entire second level provides a warm acoustically pleasant environment.  In the evening, the building acts as a softly glowing lantern on campus, lit from within via the richly expressed ceiling.

Interior spaces include traditional book stacks, multi-media classrooms, private and group study areas, 24/7 study area, cafe, and public spaces for readings, lectures and exhibitions.  The thoughtful layout provides public/social spaces on the west wall facing the campus quadrangle, while quiet study and individual spaces are primarily placed on the east.  The book stacks are arrayed along the eastern edge of the building on the ground and second levels.  A central “core” houses classroom and office spaces and serves as a hub for vertical circulation at the library’s center.  Flexibility for future technology and pedagogical needs is promoted by an open flexible floor plan and the use of access flooring for distribution of ventilation and utility resources.

The library’s interior finishes reflect a simple and sophisticated material palette influenced by local Idaho resources, and furniture selections reinforce moments for casual dialogue and enhanced meeting spaces.