San Diego Central Library, Public library in Downtown East Village, San Diego, United States.
San Diego Central Library is the main public library of San Diego, located in the East Village neighborhood of downtown, and spans nine floors housing books, media, work areas, and meeting rooms. The building is easily recognized by its steel dome covered in mesh screening that tops the upper floors.
The current building opened in 2013, replacing an older facility that had served as the city's main library since 1954. Construction took several years and was funded through a mix of public money and private donations.
The library is home to the Sullivan Family Baseball Research Center, a collection devoted to baseball history with documents, photos, and books that anyone can browse. This makes it a gathering point for sports history enthusiasts who might not expect to find such a resource inside a public library.
The library is open seven days a week and welcomes walk-in visitors, with free Wi-Fi and public computers available on every floor. Guided tours are offered and can be a good way to get your bearings in such a large building.
The dome at the top of the building covers a three-story reading room where the metal mesh filters daylight from above. The same upper floors also house a high school that operates inside the building, which is a rare arrangement for a public library in the United States.
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