2016 Charleston Library Conference

It is not a new trend that libraries are being forced to reduce their print collections in order to repurpose space for their students and faculty. Indeed, it has become more the norm than the exception here in the United States. It is not a new trend that more US libraries are sharing facilities to store print materials, but the stability and successful continuity of these collaborations varies widely across the country.

The Joint Library Facility in Bryan, Texas, has been a successful collaboration between Texas A&M University and the University of Texas in Austin since 2013. The first 18,000 square foot warehouse built in 2012 can hold 1 million volumes and is now three-quarters full. A second warehouse is breaking ground just a few feet away to hold another 1 million volumes. The enormous success of this unlikely partnership was built on a strategic plan to hold one copy of each unique item, and allow free Interlibrary Loan services for any Texas library in need. Academic and medical libraries alike have benefitted from this unique common ground. The Texas Medical Center Library is just one of many that secured access to a print collection lost in a library re-design, by partnering with the JLF. Meanwhile, the JLF is acquiring new spaces and new roles in preserving the past while embracing the future.