Forsyth County Public Library, Sharon Forks Branch

By the beginning of 2016, Forsyth County’s Sharon Forks library was on its way to becoming the busiest public library in the state of Georgia, quickly approaching the threshold of one million checked-out items.

McMillan Pazdan Smith was commissioned to help increase the branch’s overall efficiency, while also expanding the children, young adult, and teen areas — one of the larger patron groups. Working around challenging site constraints and a parking shortage, the design team used specially engineered underground detention systems to reconfigure the parking lot and create room for the 13,000 SF addition.

In the new design, patrons are greeted by an open help desk and a playful portal to the Children’s and Young Adult Collections. Rounding the left side of the help desk, patrons can find quick “grab-n-go” reserved books and self-check-out counters. As they move further into the building, areas are clearly laid out for computer stations, fiction and non-fiction collections, and group study rooms.

Our services included assessing all existing furniture to determine the maximum amount reusable, as well as evaluating new pieces to complement the renovated spaces. The team also designed two automated handling systems each with a 13-bin capacity.