Valencia Park/Malcolm X

Officially known as the Valencia Park/Malcolm X Branch Library & Performing Arts Center, this branch was built in 1996. The library is located in Valencia Park, a neighborhood in Southeast San Diego. It's the first branch I've visited so far from that region, which includes all neighborhoods in San Diego's city limits that are south of the 94 freeway (with the exception of Otay Mesa and San Ysidro, which border Tijuana and are geographically disconnected from the rest of the city proper).

Every branch in the SDPL system has a unique feel, but I genuinely think that this branch is one of the most distinct. I was unable to find the square footage of the branch, but it's among the largest I've been to so far. The size is kind of underscored by the fact that it has a spread out/open layout, which is a rarity for many other branches that create divisions between different areas using shelves. One of the things I dislike about larger branches is that they can often feel like mazes. However, in the Valencia Park/Malcolm X Branch, most of the library is visible from most viewpoints in the building. The advantage to this openness is that the library feels much more relaxed than do some other branches, but the downside it's that it's harder to find secluded desks or nooks to study in, if that's what you're looking for in a library. Another unique aspect is that the library generally seems to be less busy and thus quieter than other branches. Of course, I've only visited twice, once on a weekend afternoon and once on a weekday morning, and the branch serves a large geographic area, so it's difficult to know if I've seen an accurate depiction.

The collection of books is pretty large, but not comparatively so for other branches of its size. In turn, though, there's a lot of seating and table space available. Like most libraries of its size, the branch is two stories with the second being a balcony that overlooks the first, but the second floor feels more like a stage overlooking the first floor than it does a separate terrace. It's probably about 6 or 7 feet above the first floor instead of the typical 10-12, and accordingly there's no accessible floor space underneath it, with the walls serving as shelves or desk space. There's also kind of mid-level between the first and second floors, connected to them by ramps, that has desktop computers.

This picture is from Yelp, but it gives a nice feel of the layout. This is the center of the library, with the second level straight ahead, a computer section in the center, and the circulation desk to the back of the person who took the picture.