The new entrance to USM’s Glickman Library officially opened last Wednesday afternoon with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The new entrance that faces the campus is part of an ongoing revitalizing project financed through private donations and government earmarked funds, which the University hopes will make the campus more attractive to its students and faculty.
The new entryway replaces the original Forest Avenue entrance that faced away from campus towards Portland’s busiest street. Library director David Nutty said during the ceremony, “This is more than just a door, this is your campus library.” The entryway’s design was developed with the help of KKA Architects in Boston and focuses on allowing more natural light to come through.
Switching the entrance towards campus makes the library seem closer to the rest of the buildings. “I park right there in the parking garage, so it’s an easier walk.” USM student Casey Webster said about the new entryway.
The new entryway is considered by many to be a positive addition to USM’s Portland Campus. “It’s more convenient, and the entrance should be facing campus instead of Forest Avenue,” Library secretary Jennifer Barret said.
The new entrance is part of a long arcade that serves as a portal to the library as well as the Osher Map collection, the most prominent collection of historical maps in New England, which is scheduled to open in September ’09. USM president, Selma Botman, who gave a brief speech before cutting the ribbon said, “This new entrance is a portal to a bright future.” As Botman struggled to cut the ribbon, she remarked “It’s not very elegant, but we’re geting there,” drawing a parallel to the University’s economic troubles.
The library buildng was originally constructed in 1919 and served as a bakery until the 1950’s when it became a plumbing supply company and warehouse. The University purchased the building in 1990 and transformed it into the technological center that it is today.
Zip Kellogg, a reference librarian who has been with the University for 24 years, hopes that students are drawn to the closer location, urging, “Hey gang, come on down.” Zip helped move the library in 1993 from what is now the computer lab in Luther Bonney to the first four floors of its present location. The top three floors were renovated in 2004 to accommodate the library’s growing collection of materials. The addition of this new entrance, “celebrates the final step,” says Nutty.
Staying competitive in the 21st century means that the library must focus not only on the printed material found in the stacks, but also access to electronic resources through the library’s vast network of texts found online. President Botman said, “The availability of electronic library resources are an indication of who we are and will become.” According to its website, the Glickman library contains more than 200,000 bound volumes, 1,500 subscriptions, and nearly three-quarters of a million pieces of microfilm.
Student body president, Ben Taylor, who also attended the ceremony said that the new entrance, “ties the campus together,” adding, “It’s nice to see something good that’s been done and to appreciate it.”
Despite the hard economic times faced by USM, the event managed to bring people together and connect them to an important foundation of the University system.
“The library is central to university life,” President Botman said. “All of these books are yours.”