Holst Architecture has completed the East County Library in Gresham, Oregon, a mass-timber structure originally designed by Adjaye Associates. The building features tall glued-laminated timber columns at its entrance and a central atrium with a double-height space, along with a trapezoidal roof structure.
The library has dual entry programmes on each side. One opens to a plaza created from a converted street, while the other features ramps for accessibility. A rail line borders one side and a bus line the other. Holst principal Brittany Shreiner said the design aimed for "awe and accessibility," with the massive columned entry intended as a "big civic moment" that evokes the feeling of entering a forest.
Holst took over the project after Adjaye Associates founder David Adjaye faced misconduct allegations in a Financial Times investigation. Adjaye denies the allegations. The county requested that Holst bring the project forward without a total redesign. Shreiner noted that major changes included removing screens that were to overhang the covered entryways and a tower that extended past the roof plane.
The building combines concrete and mass-timber elements, with wooden floorplates and walls alongside concrete-and-steel cores. The facade mixes vertical timber elements with high-performance concrete bands and glass. Notches in the timber columns and beams give the structure a cabin-like appearance while serving to hide mechanical systems and lighting.
Inside, the main core runs between the entrances with a wood-slatted spiral staircase. Primary book-storage spaces surround the central atrium, with breakout rooms and classrooms on the perimeter. Sawtooth lightwells on the roof bring diffuse light into the central space, and a rooftop patio overlooks the mountains. Holst worked with local mass-timber supplier TimberLab on materials.