Champaign Public Library Receives Top Honor in Chicago Architecture Awards

The Champaign Public Library was among the top honorees when the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) presented its 2009 design excellence awards on October 30.

A jury of architects gave the library the highest level of distinction, an honor award, in the interior architecture category.  "The interiors are treated with care and the materials have been selected and detailed with unusual concert for a total composition," one juror noted. "The furnishings are elegant partners with the interior spaces, which are previewed by a very noble stairway core."

The 122,600-square-foot library, which opened in January 2008, was designed by Chicago-based Ross Barney Architects. Design Principal Carol Ross Barney is a graduate of the University of Illinois. The local associate architect for the project was Gorski Reifsteck, with construction management by PKD, Inc.

The Chicago chapter of the AIA is the second largest in the country. Out of 252 entries, most of them for projects in the Chicago area, only 30 received awards, which were given in four categories. The library was one of four honor award winners for interior architecture; five additional projects received citations of merit in the same category.