Photo: James Brady
Manuel Oncina Architects Inc. and Ferguson Pape Baldwin Architects designed the Mission Hills-Hillcrest Knox Library with a lightweight steel frame with a wood infill structure, which showcases hammer- beam steel trusses recalling the Craftsman aesthetic. A standing seam metal roof system covers the character-giving portions of the roof, including the elevator tower, and flat TPO roofing surrounding the gables.
Manuel Oncina, owner and architect at Manuel Oncina Architects, says, “Metal roofing is an essential product when longevity, low maintenance and high design are to be achieved.”
The single-story project is located over a new two-level underground parking structure connected by a passenger elevator. It is situated on a prominent corner on Front Avenue and Washington Street. The building is hemmed in on a tight site with a public elementary school on the south and a public alley on the west.
“Modern libraries have become community centers and landmarks that need materials to match not only the surrounding character, but meet stringent budgets,” Oncina says.
Buxcon Sheet Metal Inc. installed 8,700 square feet of Metal Sales Manufacturing Corp.’s 24-gauge standing seam roof system in Antique Patina on the 15,800-square-foot library.
