Min Li

Program
The project is a retail building; its primary use will be for a bookstore. The first floor is comprised of a main service area, café and transitional spaces. The 2nd and 3rd floors consist of different reading areas.
Façade
The façade of the building has two primary materials: glass and tile. The main entrance uses a metal, single swing door. Most of the façade is comprised of different size safety glass supported by a steel frame. The curtain wall, produced by PPG Architectural Glass Co., is placed over openings to allow natural daylight to penetrate into the interior spaces. The space where natural light becomes essential is the café on the ground floor and the reading rooms on the upper floors. The 18”x18” deep red tiles are made by US Tile Co. This tile is used as the exterior finishing material over the concrete support wall. Cast-in-place concrete is the primary construction system. Cast-in-place concrete is used with bearing wall structure to support the cast-in-place concrete slabs. The cast-in-place concrete columns and beams are also used as the structure system for the building.

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