Downers Grove library addresses shadowy stacks with lighting upgrades

DOWNERS GROVE – When the Downers Grove Public Library added taller book stacks as part of its 2014 renovations, it created an unintended lighting problem for patrons in the stacks.

“The former configuration of the light fixtures resulted in a lot of shadows cast by the bookshelves themselves,” library director Rick Ashton said. “In some areas, you couldn’t read the spines for the books on the shelves.”

To solve this problem, the library spent $58,800 to install new florescent lights above the book stacks on the second floor.

The layout on the second floor includes a long span of tall bookshelves along the south wall with 36-inch aisles.

The previous lights were suspended from the ceiling and designed to direct light both toward the ceiling and below.

The new lights are single tubes installed in the ceiling and perpendicular to the book stacks. They are spaced in order to direct the light downward and limit the shadows cast by the bookshelves.

The library also plans to improve the lighting in two other areas: a high-ceiling area in the children’s library in the southeast corner and a conference room on the north side that was once a quiet study space.

Ashton said the Library Board of Trustees has received preliminary designs and cost estimates for the projects.

He said the library was aware of its lighting needs during its 2014 renovations but did not have enough money at the time to do all the lighting work

“Lighting is something you can do incrementally,” he said.