Home Destinations USA Washington Seattle Sights Seattle Central Library

Seattle Central Library Review

Read our Seattle sights reviews. Or post your own.

Seattle Central Library

Address: 1000 4th Ave., Downtown, Seattle, WA | Map It
Phone: 206/386-4636
www.spl.org

Category: Libraries
Location: Downtown

Write a review

Fodor's Review:

The structure that resembles a spaceship covered in delicate spiderweb threads is the hub of Seattle's 25-branch library system. Designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas, the 11-story building houses 1.4 million books—the nonfiction titles on a four-level "book spiral" with continuous access—plus 400 computers, an auditorium, a "mixing chamber" floor of information desks, an area with materials in languages other than English, and a café. Floors zigzagging upward are visible from outside the metal facade. Intersecting beams, pipes, and trusses ensure that the costly building ($159 million plus) can withstand the region's earthquakes. Tours focusing on the building's architecture are offered several times a week on a first-come, first-served basis; call for a current schedule. The reading room on the 10th floor has views of the city and the water.