History
John Igo is a San Antonio native and grew up near the location of the new library, which is located on ranch land originally owned by his family. He received Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees from Trinity University and began his educational career there as a librarian and English instructor. In 1953 he began teaching at San Antonio College, where he continued until his retirement after more than 40 years. Professor Igo is the author of a number of books of verse and is well-known throughout the San Antonio theater community for his work as a playwright, director, critic and producer. He is a recipient of the National Society of Arts and Letters National Literature Award and
the American Association of Community Theaters Spotlight Award, given for service to community theater. The San Antonio Theater Coalition has honored him with a special tribute as a “living legend.”
Approximately 16,000 square feet on a 24-acre site near the intersection of Hausman and Woller Roads.
The library includes a community meeting room space, computer labs and a windmill/art structure - which acts as an alternative energy source/environmental demonstration project
Project architect was Rehler Vaughn & Koone, Inc. with design enhancement by James Hetherington. Groundbreaking ceremony was held Thursday, July 27, 2006. The opening date was Saturday, December 8, 2007
The library is almost hidden from the main road, allowing only glimpses of shape and form through and above the existing vegetation. A 30-foot windmill greets visitors. This non-traditional hybrid windmill will harvest power from the intermittent wind source and, through a generator, provide supplemental power to a small water pump, allowing the water to flow down a channel and through the building to a water basin. This channel is paired with a 120-foot window wall along the building, allowing visitors to maintain a connection to the library even from the outside, and creating an axis with the windmill and a heritage oak acting as signifiers that anchor the two endpoints.
Located in the center of this axis is an entry tower, which will act as a control point separating the library from the community meeting rooms, to allow use of the meeting rooms during non-library hours while maintaining the sense of entry for all. The check-out desk divides the library into two separate column-free spaces, each of which has a visual connection between the windmill and heritage oak from almost any location in the library.
Visitors may step out of the library to the heritage live oak, where one may discover a natural outdoor reading enclosure where patrons may read or gather in small groups. Further exploration will reveal many other gathering areas and an old limestone structure from the previous farm, once used for curing meats and now standing as a historical artifact and a backdrop to the preservation of land and history.