The addition is four floors high, extending each floor of the current four-story building. The third floor contains stacks, group study rooms, and seating. The basement level of the addition contains compact shelving for storage of Special Collections materials. The two reading rooms were designed to be both aesthetically pleasing and highly functional. The central area of each room extends through the floor above, creating a balcony effect on the third floor.
Large windows line the exterior walls.
The aim was to create large spaces that are both dramatic and inviting in which students, faculty, and other patrons can read and work. The Walton Family Charitable Trust, Inc., has donated funds for furnishing the reading rooms as well as portions of the remodeled areas in the existing building. The south reading room is to be named in honor of Mrs. Helen Robson Walton. The main floor of the existing building has been extensively remodeled and is in keeping with the interior design of the addition. The Reference, Circulation, Interlibrary Loan, and Technical Services areas have been dramatically renovated, and an Express Circulation Desk at the west entrance has been added.