Abstract
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas Lied Library Architectural Records (1965-2010) are comprised of drawings and documents created by the American architecture firms of Welles Pugsley Architects and Leo A Daly Architects, as well as their associated consultants, engineers, and other professional collaborators. This collection documents the design and construction of Lied Library at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). The materials feature both hand-drawn and computer generated architectural drawings, ranging from preliminary sketches and artist renderings to schematic drawings and construction documents.
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Scope and Contents Note
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas Lied Library Architectural Records (1965-2010) are comprised of drawings and documents created by the American architecture firms of Welles Pugsley Architects and Leo A Daly Architects, as well as their associated consultants, engineers, and other professional collaborators. This collection documents the design and construction of Lied Library at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). The materials document the design and construction from initial programming and schematic design to final construction and bid sets of drawings, and interior and furniture plans.
The architectural drawings range from preliminary sketches and artist renderings to schematic drawings and construction documents. The drawings also contain work from a number of consultants, engineers, and other professionals who collaborated on the development of related projects. These include the design and construction documents the architects submitted to the Nevada Public Works Board in the course of the Lied Library project. A typical set of construction documents may include drawings such as: site plans, floor plans, exterior and interior elevations, building and wall sections, construction details, and structural plans. Other associated drawings include plans and diagrams for furniture, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems. Also included are later revisions and additions to the building, records containing furniture and other vendor information, room data sheets, photographs, renderings, and awards. This collection also includes digital and printed copies of presentations and handouts used for presentations on the Lied Library building and the Lied Library Automated Storage Retrieval (LASR) system at conferences and meetings between 2004 to 2007.
Access Note
Collection is open for research. Arrangements must be made in advance to access digital files; please contact UNLV Special Collections and Archives for additional information.
Publication Rights
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Arrangement
Materials are arranged into two series:
I. Architectural Drawings, 1965-2010;
II. Project Records, 1989-2007.
Biographical / Historical Note
In 1990, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) underwent its ten-year accreditation review by the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges. Although the Library’s own self-study report did not address the limitations of its current facilities, the Evaluation Committee’s Report did:
“It is impossible to access library resources without recognizing the physical facility that is currently available to the library as a major detriment to delivery of services and programs, as well as a deterrent to information access and awareness on the part of the faculty and students...the tremendous increase in the student FTE (full-time equivalent) and the proliferation of programs and their accompanying collections will mandate that a larger and better planned facility will be needed within a few years.”
The evaluation committee recommended to increase library funding and to retrofit the physical plant accommodate today’s modern needs. Additionally, the new facility was planned to be available in the coming term. The university administration took note and a new library building was given second priority in its capital budget. The Dean of Libraries, Mary Dale Deacon, noted in the 1991 annual report submitted, the libary had a commitment from the university administration to build a new library within the next 8 years.
In 1991, the New Library Planning Committee was formed to gather departmental programming data and space requirements to draft the new library program. In 1993, the Nevada Public Works Board funded a feasibility study by the local architecture firm Welles Pugsley Architects, who would become the architect of record, and Leo A Daly, a national design firm from Omaha, Nebraska. The architects worked with Omni Group/Becker & Hayes Library Planning Consultants, submitting a Master Planning Phase Scope of Work (site selection) and Needs Assessment in 1994, projecting a need for a 314,000 available square feet (ASF) main library facility by 2013. The two sites under consideration were the original library site and the site eventually decided upon at Harmon Avenue and Gym Road.
In 1994, the Lied Charitable Trust, under its sole trustee, Christina M. Hixon, donated $10 million toward the construction of the new library to be named the Lied Library, a gift later increased to $15 million. Between 1994 and 1995, library staff completed library needs surveys with the architects, later submitting the final Space Needs Program in April 1995. The schematic design phase (block diagrams, department locations, and adjacencies) occurred between February and April 1996, resulting in a final schematic design presentation submitted for a five-story, 302,000 square foot building.
The design development phase occurred between April and August 1996, and resulted in the development of room layouts, building systems, and preliminary furniture plans. In September 1996, the construction document phase began. In August 1996, the first interior renderings and floor plans were presented, and on December 23, 1996, the sixty percent submittal drawings were submitted to the Public Works Board. In its 1997 session, the Nevada State Legislature appropriated $32,803,778 for the library's construction. After months of review by both library and UNLV facilities staff, the final construction documents were submitted to Public Works Board on April 25, 1997 and bid sets were sent out on December 1, 1997. The construction bids were opened January 20, 1998, awarded to Tibesar Construction Company. Ground was broken for the Lied Library on March 27, 1998.
As construction progressed, final interior design and furniture plans were developed by Fielden and Partners. Construction ran behind schedule and the opening was delayed and re-scheduled for the beginning of the winter semester of 2001. Between July 2000 and January 2001, the collections, staff, and offices moved into the new building as library systems staff finalized the installation of computers and equipment. Lied Library officially opened to the public on January 8, 2001 at a final cost of $55.3 million.
Source:
"UNLV Libraries - A Brief History." University Libraries. March 02, 2017. Accessed July 23, 2019. https://www.library.unlv.edu/about/history.html
Preferred Citation
University of Nevada, Las Vegas Lied Library Architectural Records, 1965-2010. UA-00074. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Acquisition Note
Materials were collected as part of the University Archives at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Libraries Special Collections between 2001 and 2018; accession numbers 2001-031a and 2018-018. In 2022, additional materials were added to the collection by Peter Michel; accession number 2022-058.
Processing Note
The finding aid was created and materials were processed in 2017 by Jimmy Chang and Tyler Stanger who physically rehoused, inventoried, and described the records. The 2018 accession was processed during accessioning by Tammi Kim who transferred digital files off of a Secure Digital (SD) card and updated the finding aid. In 2019, Jimmy Chang rehoused and arranged the materials, and revised the collection description to bring it into compliance with current professional standards. In 2022, Sarah Jones added the additional material into the collection and revised the finding aid.