Carefully tucked into the secure, climate- and humidity-controlled, renovated spaces in the basement of the building known as the 11000 Cedar Incubator are invaluable Kelvin Smith Library (KSL) resources for students, faculty, staff and the greater Case Western Reserve University community to use in research and other scholarly pursuits. The new KSL Collections Annex replaces off-site storage for part of the general collection. It also frees up special collections space at KSL and allows librarians to acquire additional resources to benefit the community.
Since opening in 1996, KSL has partnered with several institutions to help manage their histories—notably, the Cleveland Play House archive that covers 100 years of history (stored in more than 1,000 boxes!)
With material storage areas in the main library at capacity, many items were previously housed off-campus at a specialized facility. However, KSL staff were determined to bring these materials and future resources back to campus—a goal that required vision.
“The spaces didn’t inspire lots of confidence in the beginning,” said William Claspy, team leader for university archives and special collections. “The rooms were dark, had chain link fence cages and were dirty, like an old coal cellar.”
However, the available rooms near the existing university archive offices and storage areas were convenient, so work began with the university’s Department of Campus Planning and Facilities Management to renovate the spaces for their vital new roles. Along with contractors and subcontractors, KSL leadership teamed up with a company that designs and makes space-saving shelving for custom 11’ shelves and sourced a hydraulic lift for acquiring items toward the top.
The KSL Annex is now open for business, making it quicker for students, faculty and staff to get their hands on more information.
“Now, it's more like an extension of our collection,” said Rachel Stott, team lead for research and engagement services. “Our community will be able to see the items, request them and they'll be brought over to KSL, it will just be local, instead of 45 minutes away.”
And because the materials will all be in one place, it will make retrieving answers and physical resources more efficient for archival staff.
“We’re no longer splitting up a collection among two or three different spaces, so it will help with efficiency and retrieval, and being able to answer questions and help people out because you don't have to look in all these different places to get the answer,” said University Archivist Helen Conger.
KSL staff agree that the annex is a game changer when it comes to caring for and growing resources for the library.
“It provides us with the room to continue acquiring unique and valuable materials, “ said Jennifer Green, associate university librarian for collections, research and engagement services. “This growth ensures that we can keep enriching our holdings and offering unparalleled resources for research and scholarship.”
Claspy echoes Green’s sentiment.
“This is the best thing to happen for our collections, maybe since KSL was built.”