Walker Library (Minneapolis)

Walker Library is a public library in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was one of the 15 libraries merged from Minneapolis Public Library to Hennepin County Library. Original 1911 building The original building was built in 1911. When it was bulit, the area was not very populated. 1981 building In the 1970s was too small for the traffic. It was replaced by the Walker Community Library across the street in 1981. The new library cost of $2.3 million. It was one of the first underground libraries in the country. It had a 36 car parking lot. Traffic in the library went up 77% from 1980 to 1981. Walker Library became the second most popular library in Minneapolis Public Library, only behind Washburn Library. Most of the library was underground. There was a large "LIBRARY" sign in front of the library. The library had a book return that sent books to the bottom floor. The building was made underground to save space and energy. It was not visible from outside and had problems with water. By 1994, many wanted to move back to the old library building instead of renovating the new one. In 1995, the buliding was renovated to fix stability issues. Seven foot tall "LIBRARY" text was added outside of the library. By 2006, it was proposed to replace the building with something more visible. In 2013, the building was destroyed to make a new library. 2014 building The 1981 building closed on September 22, 2012. The new building opened on April 26, 2014. The new building had rows of computers, self checkout stations, and a underground Parking garage. The library text was moved above the parking garage. References