John Igo Library

Directions
Take IH-10 to Loop 1604 West. Stay on Loop 1604 to the Hausman Road/Kyle Seale Parkway exit. DO NOT TURN ON KYLE SEALE PARKWAY. Continue to travel west PAST the Loop 1604/Kyle Seale Parkway intersection to the next intersection, which is Hausman Road. Turn east on Hausman Road and travel to the first traffic light, which is the Kyle Seale Parkway extension inside Loop 1604. Turn right at the traffic light. The library will be on your left approximately two blocks from the intersection. (Note: If you use Google Maps, Yahoo! Maps or Mapquest, entering 13330 Kyle Seale Parkway in the search function will return incorrect directions.)

BUS ROUTES
605 (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

About the name
John Igo is a San Antonio native and grew up near the location of the new library, which is located on ranch land originally owned by his family. He received Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees from Trinity University and began his educational career there as a librarian and English instructor. In 1953 he began teaching at San Antonio College, where he continued until his retirement after more than 40 years. Professor Igo is the author of a number of books of verse and is well-known throughout the San Antonio theater community for his work as a playwright, director, critic and producer. He is a recipient of the National Society of Arts and Letters National Literature Award and the American Association of Community Theaters Spotlight Award, given for service to community theater. The San Antonio Theater Coalition has honored him with a special tribute as a “living legend.”

Description: New branch library, approximately 17,000 square feet
Location/ District: 13330 Kyle Seale Parkway, a 24-acre site near the intersection of Hausman and Woller Roads / City Council District 8
City Architect: Chester Slimp
Project Architect: Rehler Vaughn & Koone, Inc.
Design Enhancement: James Hetherington
Construction Contract: F.A. Nunnelly Company
Grand Opening: December 8, 2007

Approximately 16,000 square feet on a 24-acre site near the intersection of Hausman and Woller Roads.

• Community meeting room space,
• Computer labs
• A windmill/art structure - which acts as an alternative energy source/environmental demonstration project

Project architect was Rehler Vaughn & Koone, Inc. with design enhancement by James Hetherington. Groundbreaking ceremony was held Thursday, July 27, 2006. The opening date was Saturday, December 8, 2007

About the design
The library is almost hidden from the main road, allowing only glimpses of shape and form through and above the existing vegetation. A 30-foot windmill greets visitors. This non-traditional hybrid windmill will harvest power from the intermittent wind source and, through a generator, provide supplemental power to a small water pump, allowing the water to flow down a channel and through the building to a water basin. This channel is paired with a 120-foot window wall along the building, allowing visitors to maintain a connection to the library even from the outside, and creating an axis with the windmill and a heritage oak acting as signifiers that anchor the two endpoints.

Located in the center of this axis is an entry tower, which will act as a control point separating the library from the community meeting rooms, to allow use of the meeting rooms during non-library hours while maintaining the sense of entry for all. The check-out desk divides the library into two separate column-free spaces, each of which has a visual connection between the windmill and heritage oak from almost any location in the library.

Visitors may step out of the library to the heritage live oak, where one may discover a natural outdoor reading enclosure where patrons may read or gather in small groups. Further exploration will reveal many other gathering areas and an old limestone structure from the previous farm, once used for curing meats and now standing as a historical artifact and a backdrop to the preservation of land and history.

About the location
Located in northwest San Antonio, the library was designed to preserve the natural landscape and history of the land. The building is nestled on the edge of a future 24-acre park on Hausman Road. The existing natural landscape varies between South Texas wildflower meadows and Texas Hill Country live oaks. The architects and contractors were careful to respect the once-rural Texas land through the building form and site preservation.

Community Served

Updated: 03/31/2008