Library Repository Project

The University of Michigan is moving forward with the design phase of a library repository project, slated to be built adjacent to US-23 and Geddes Road, which will:

provide optimal environmental conditions for a significant portion of one of the largest public research collections in the country
serve as a center for the preservation and distribution of the collection
create new possibilities for campus library spaces while ensuring long-term ready access to valuable research materials

Read the announcement about the project and learn more about why we're building a repository.

Repository by the numbers

The facility will feature 53,000 square feet of high-density, temperature and humidity controlled, secure preservation stacks (capacity for about 8 million physical volumes), and 60,000 square feet of workspace for collections management, conservation, retrieval, and digitization.

What the project will mean for you

You will continue to have access to all of the materials in our physical collection, including a significant browseable collection in campus libraries.

We will deliver materials housed in the repository on request, via our well-established services.

We anticipate a three-year design and construction timeline, followed by a multi-year, phased project to move the collection, which will be designed to minimize disruptions to access and service.

We’ll be providing regular project status updates on our website and elsewhere, including information about the movement of materials to the repository.

Contact

Contact Alan Piñon, director of communication and marketing, at apinon@umich.edu, for more information about the project.