Flagship Library
Introduction
The Vasconcelos Library of Mexico City is a bibliographic facility located in the center of the Mexican capital, adjacent to the old Buenavista train station and the Tianguis Cultural del Chopo. It is located in the center of Mexico City, it was inaugurated on May 16, 2006 and service to the public began on June 1 of that same year.[4] Its design and spaciousness are continually reviewed in art and architecture magazines and publications.[5].
The library was designed by a team led by the Mexican architect Alberto Kalach.[6] The other members of the team were Gustavo Lipkau"), Juan Palomar") and Tonatiuh Martínez"), who was the winner of the competition in which 592 professionals participated.[7] The total area of the land is , where the central building of the library, the gardens, the greenhouse and the bookstore are housed.[8] and it has a design that allows the shelving to be expanded to grow its collection"), which officially is 575,000 books.[9] One of its powers is to allow the expansion of the space for books and to be able to reach a maximum of 2,000,000 copies. At the beginning of 2015, it had 600,000 volumes. With more than 1,725,000 annual visits (2004), it is one of the most frequented public libraries in Latin America.
This library covers 37,962 square meters of construction,[10] and had a projected initial cost of 954 million pesos (at that time, approximately 98 million US dollars).[11] The Congress of the Republic proposed plans to reduce the 2005 budget, and included cuts to the three branches of government; The National Action Party (party of then-president Vicente Fox Quesada) proposed an alternate budget, which preserved funds for the Enciclomedia project and for this library.[12].
It is a bright space, thanks to the play of transparencies that the ceiling and glass walls give it. It has three upper levels and a ground floor, and is an admirable example of modern architecture.
The venue can have a maximum capacity of up to 5,000 people daily, which constitutes an influx of 1,825,000 visitors per year. For the convenience of users, it has a parking lot with capacity for 325 cars.
Due to delays in its opening and subsequent failures, it is one of the most controversial and - in absolute numbers - the largest expenditures on public infrastructure by the government of then President Vicente Fox. At that time, the Mexican press called it a "megalibrary." It is dedicated to the philosopher, educator and presidential candidate José Vasconcelos, who was president of the National Library of Mexico and an active promoter of reading at the beginning of the century.