Francis A. Gregory Neighborhood Library, Public library in Hillcrest neighborhood, Washington D.C., United States.
Francis A. Gregory Neighborhood Library is a two-story glass-sheathed box with an aluminum roof that juts out over every side, designed by David Adjaye and opened in 2012. It replaced the 1961 Fort Davis Branch on the same site and cost $11 million to build. The building is LEED Gold-certified and was described in Architectural Record as a "shimmering pavilion."
The first Francis A. Gregory Library opened in January 1961 as the Fort Davis Branch, the fifth of eleven branch libraries funded by a District public works program. Architect Victor DeMers designed it on former Fort Davis Park land transferred from the National Capital Planning Commission. In 1986 it was renamed for Francis A. Gregory, the first Black president of the DC Public Library Board of Trustees. The original building was later demolished and replaced on the same site by a new library that opened on June 19, 2012.
The library serves as a gathering place where neighborhood residents participate in language classes and enroll their children in reading programs. Visitors see families accessing resources that are tailored to the needs of the Fort Davis and Hillcrest communities.
The library sits at 3660 Alabama Avenue Southeast and is straightforward to visit. Free services including public computers, printing options, wireless internet, and meeting rooms are available for all visitors.
The 2012 building replaced the 1961 branch on the same site rather than renovating it; it was built for $11 million and described in Architectural Record as a "shimmering pavilion." Its aluminum roof juts out over every side of the glass box.
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