Merrill-Cazier Library Dedicated

The numbers are impressive: 304,000 total square feet with 189,000 square feet of new construction; 2,200 available seats; 30 study rooms; 190 computer terminals; 24 wireless hubs; 230,00 feet of telecommunication cable; 1,360 telecommunication jacks and 13,000 yards of concrete.

Those are the numbers. Facts. Figures. Statistics.

Much more was celebrated and recognized April 14 as the campus – students, faculty, administrators, staff and community members – came together to celebrate and dedicate the Merrill-Cazier Library at Utah State University. Members of the Milton R. Merrill family were on hand, including Merrill’s sons, Richard and Steven, as were Stanford O. Cazier and his son, David, and members of his extended family.

A highlight of the dedication was the keynote speech by guest Richard Rodriguez, who was introduced by USU’s Executive Vice President and Provost Raymond Coward. Additional speakers included Linda L. Wolcott, vice provost for libraries and instructional support, Utah State University President Stan L. Albrecht, former ASUSU student body President Quinn Millet.

“Three years ago I spoke at the groundbreaking about the importance of the library as a place,” Wolcott said. “Despite the trend toward electronic access, the role of the library has not diminished. In fact, I think that its role has been enhanced. Web access, multi-tasking cell phones and Blackberries to the contrary, libraries remain central to the life of the university – especially to the intellectual and social life of its students.”

Wolcott summarized the seven concepts that guided the design of the Merrill-Cazier Library and its many spaces. Those concepts include integration, interaction, flexibility, connectivity, functionality, aesthetic appeal and engagement.

“In addition to having features that make the library a welcoming place, it is also a place of engagement,” Wolcott said. “An engaging library is a destination – a place where students want to be.”

Since opening in September 2005, the Merrill-Cazier Library has seen a 15 percent increase in use over the former facility.

Among the library’s many advances and new technology is the automated storage and retrieval system, fondly christened the “BARN.” It’s numbers, facts and figures are also impressive. It has a 1.5 million volume capacity; 4,939 shelving units; three automated cranes with room for one more that travel 5.5 feet per second horizontally and two feet per second vertically. The average retrieval time is five minutes. The BARN is 60 feet wide, 120 feet long and 85 feet high.

The technology is important, but everyone agreed, so is “place,” and the Merrill-Cazier Library is an important place. It will serve for generations to come.

As noted by many, including President Albrecht, the highlight of the day was the keynote address by Rodriguez, who is known as one of America’s most important essayists and master of the personal essay. He writes about the intersection of his personal life with some of the great vexing issues of America.

His keynote address mirrored his writing style. He spoke of his youth, his family, his friends; of learning and libraries, of society and life.

“I tell those of you who are young and new to this building, use it,” Rodriguez said. “Become a traveler here. The world is in these walls. Generations are held in these walls. There is something alive here. There is something continuous. As you leave [you will notice that] somebody had the presence of mind to rescue, from the heap, the cornerstone from the old library in the 1930s. The past is here. The past is here to school you into the future.”