Simpson College – Dunn Library Renovation

Simpson College’s Dunn Library was reaching the end of its servicable life, with degrading building features and outdated systems creating an extensive list of maintenance issues that were impacting the college’s budget. Simpson College engaged with Story Construction alongside The Lawrence Group to explore how the building could be modernized while preserving significant pieces of the Richard Neutra design.

Story Construction became involved in the project in 2021 when inflationary pressures and supply chain issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic were still impacting construction projects everywhere. These issues required creativity by Story’s preconstruction team to ensure the college’s priorities for the project were met with the funding they had available to them. The team presented Simpson with a variety of options to control cost at each stage of design, allowing the college to make informed decisions on the scope of work that was attainable.

The first floor of the library now houses a new Teacher Education Center, which includes curriculum lab, methods classrooms, and offices for faculty. The second floor of the building received new finishes and furniture to library services and collections, classrooms and study spaces, as well as a new circulation desk. The mezzanine above the second floor received similar upgrades to its quiet study spaces and meeting rooms. A new ornamental staircase was installed between the first and second floors, which features a steel structure and terrazzo treads with accent underlighting.

Crews faced the challenge of storing the many books within the library while construction was ongoing, which was solved by erecting scaffolding above the books. Story Construction crews also self-performed the replacement of the original redwood on the library’s south-facing pergola, which hadn’t been touched in 60 years. This required more than 5 miles of cedar two-by-fours and 30,000 nails to complete.