Mississippi Library Commission

Jackson, Mississippi

The Mississippi Library Commission serves a vital purpose in providing leadership, service, resources and education to 47 library systems and 2 independent libraries around the state. The Library Commission Building replaces an existing facility in Jackson’s inner city. The building is situated on a gently sloping, heavily-wooded lot on the Research and Development Park campus in Jackson. The campus is comprised of two major elements, including an office tower for 60 employees and a large library wing to house the State Library’s inter-library loan collection. Additionally, the facility houses the Mississippi Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, the Mississippi Center for the Book, a large multi-purpose/meeting room, distance learning facilities, and computer lab/classrooms. The new building design incorporates a technological infrastructure plan that accommodates today’s state-of-the-art data/telecommunications/audiovisual systems, while simultaneously providing “open infrastructure” for the evolution of tomorrow’s virtual library. Other high priorities include the design of a facility that may be characterized as timeless and inviting, distinctive and in harmony with its surroundings. It is constructed of durable materials for a long-term, low-maintenance life.

Construction Cost: $10.2 Million
Furniture and Equipment Cost: $2.9 Million
Completed 2005
Joint venture with Duvall Decker Architects

• Winner 2006 AIA Mississippi Honor Award
• Winner 2006 AIA Membership Award
• Winner 2007 American Architecture Award, The Chicago Athenaeum
• Winner 2008 AIA Gulf States Region Honor Award
• Selected 2011 American Institute of Architects “Design for Decades” Exhibition