Ursula Meyer Library and Community Center

The City of Stockton contracted Arch Nexus to provide programming, public outreach, and design services for a new library and recreation center to serve their community. This project aimed to utilize new technologies in maker spaces that tie into agriculture, food preparation, and culture making a unique community building asset. Combining libraries and recreation centers is not a new concept, but this project aligned these functions to make it a true community center. A place that listened to the citizen’s feedback and understood its various needs, including the need for a facility that is the primary center for the community’s teen population.

The Ursula Meyer Library and Community Center provides services for the public in unique ways that combine cultures and activities that bring the surrounding area together and create programs that will have a favorable economic impact on the community. This was accomplished by blurring boundaries between recreation and library. Staff members are crossed-trained, and there’s only one welcome desk for the entire facility ensuring organized and knowledgeable operations everywhere. Indoor and outdoor spaces are used to create a variety of community spaces and programs. Knowing how to translate feedback into something that serves a great community is one of the ways Arch Nexus measures success.