The three partners involved in the creation of the OPL-LAC Joint Facility are:
Ottawa Public Library
Ottawa Public Library (OPL) is the largest bilingual (English/French) public library system in North America. The OPL extends public access to information and services through the library’s branches, physical and virtual (BiblioOttawaLibrary.ca), as well as two mobile libraries and a vending machine-style lending library service. Serving close to one million Ottawa residents, OPL’s mission is to inspire learning, spark curiosity, and connect people
Library and Archives Canada
As the custodian of our distant past and recent history, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is a key resource for all Canadians who wish to gain a better understanding of who they are, individually and collectively. LAC acquires, processes, preserves and provides access to our documentary heritage and serves as the continuing memory of the Government of Canada and its institutions.
and City of Ottawa
Architects
In late 2018, award-winning Diamond Schmitt Architects (DSA) and Ottawa-based KWC Architects were selected after a rigorous process to design the new Joint Facility.
With designs to its name like Toronto’s Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, St. Petersburg’s new Mariinsky Theatre, and Ottawa’s updated National Arts Centre, the team at DSA knows how to successfully co-create buildings that are not only respected additions to a city’s architectural landscape but also cherished by their communities.
Extensive collaboration and engagement with the public is at the heart of the selected team’s approach, and has been a core feature of the design process to date.
“Our process is collaborative because we know from experience that our best projects are the result of a collaborative process, a conversation, a synthesis of program and a resolution of functional need,” said Don Schmitt, of Diamond Schmitt.1
