North Portland Library, Public library in North Portland, US.
North Portland Library stands at the corner of North Killingsworth Street and North Commercial Avenue, on land donated by neighbourhood residents. The Jacobean-style building opened in 1913 and has an open-beam ceiling and bas-reliefs inside. It holds the Multnomah County Library catalogue of two million books, periodicals and other materials.
The library was founded in 1913 and has served as an educational hub for North Portland for more than a century. The building remained a key part of the Multnomah County Library system through the neighborhood's growth and change.
The library serves as a gathering place for people from different backgrounds and maintains collections in multiple languages. Regular events such as children's storytimes shape the rhythm of neighborhood life here.
The branch sits at the corner of North Killingsworth Street and North Commercial Avenue, next to Jefferson High School. A 1996 bond measure funded seismic retrofitting, a new roof, an elevator, more restrooms and updated lighting and furniture; the building reopened on March 21, 2000 after about a year of closure. Self-checkout stations and security gates were added in 2011.
The 1996 bond-funded renovation made this the first building in Portland to receive a seismic retrofit of its kind, work by Degenkolb Engineers that won a Grand Award from the Consulting Engineers Council of Oregon in 2011. The unreinforced masonry had left it especially exposed to ground movement.
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