Griffin|Swinerton, a joint venture of Swinerton Builders and Griffin Structures, is proud to announce the commencement of construction for the Quartz Hill Public Library in the City of Lancaster, California. Yesterday morning Swinerton Builders, Griffin Structures, and the County of Los Angeles recognized the start of construction with a groundbreaking ceremony.

This project is of special interest to the County of Los Angeles, as it is a “Public Private Partnership” project delivery for a county library. This type of project — typically referred to as a P3 project — is characterized by its integration of public and private sector strengths and benefits. The Quartz Hill project is being fully designed, built, financed, and funded by the private sector entity, and then presented to the County for its occupancy under a three-year lease with option to purchase agreement. This work is the result of an RFP issued directly through the County CEO office.

Set on a 1.7-acre site, this new state-of-the-art library for the Quartz Hill community is located in the County’s Fifth District (Supervisor and Los Angeles County Mayor Michael D. Antonovich). The one-story, 12,514-square-foot building will be built around a central core. The library will be set around a campus-like environment, with central public gathering spaces and outdoor learning courtyards.

The new library will include adult, teen, and children’s reading areas, an early childhood/family area, programming space, a homework center, two group study rooms, a 100-seat community meeting room with audio/visual system, express-service checkout machines at the lobby, information services pods, public access computers, WiFi, staff areas, and public restrooms. In keeping with the Board’s policy on sustainability, the building is designed to achieve a minimum certification of LEED® Silver from the United States Green Building Council with the potential to earn Gold certification. The library has many sustainable features such as rooftop photovoltaic panels, bioswales, drought-tolerant landscaping, maximized controlled daylighting, and controlled interior lighting.

The steel canopy structures will run north to south along the eastern façade of the building, with canted roof forms facing north and south. Featuring an extensive amount of stone, its subtle desert earth tone colors will blend into the natural environment.

Designed by SVA Architecture and developed for the County of Los Angeles, the Quartz Hill Library will be a welcome addition to the community. The Griffin|Swinerton team includes Swinerton Builders, Griffin Structures, SVA Architects, and the County of Los Angeles, who are working together to design and construct this much anticipated library.

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