Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales Library

Denver Public Library opened the new Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales Branch Library to help meet the needs of Denver’s growing community. This new two-story library is approximately 27,000 sf and located at the southeast corner of the intersection of West Colfax Avenue and Irving Street in Denver. It is named after Denver’s nationally recognized civil rights leader, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales. Corky was a strong advocate for education and equality for the Latino Community in Denver. BCER was proud to be the engineers for this celebrated civic building and to be associated with such a revered leader in the Denver community. The design team incorporated many collaborative community spaces throughout the library including a music and media lab, a computing area, meeting rooms, “Storytime Tower,” and a Community Learning Plaza. The mechanical and electrical systems were specifically chosen to integrate into the spaces to further enhance the comfort and sustainability of the library. In addition to an Energy Star rating, the library is pursuing a LEED Silver Rating under the USGB LEED-NC rating system. The design team utilized another BCER project, the new Stapleton Library, as a prototype for this new West Branch Library achieving 25 points under Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, and Indoor Environmental Quality.