UCSD Geisel Library

Completed – 1970
Services – Structural
Size – 176,000 Sq Ft
Architect – William Pereira & Associates
General Contractor – Neilsen Construction Co.
Cost – $5.4 Million

Originally named the Central Library, this eight-story, concrete structure sits near the campus center. Two subterranean stories form a base for the six-story, stepped tower whose plaza’s cantilevers are supported by a structural system of sixteen concrete piers rising and extending outward at 45-degree angles. With its use of concrete and sculptural form, the Geisel’s design is a prime example of the brutalist architecture of the late 1960s—bold, while still allowing for the integration of future expansions.