It was a typical winter Sunday morning, and I was on my usual walk to Clem to drown in homework and despair for the day. But then, I saw it — “ALDERMAN LIBRARY, OPENING JANUARY 2024.” The sign sent a shudder through my entire body. As a second year, the construction of Alderman library has been one of the few constants in my life since arriving at U.Va. It has seen me at my worst. When I tearfully waved goodbye to my parents in August of my first-year, Alderman was clack, clack, clacking away. When I made my first walk back to dorms from Rugby Road, the Alderman crane watched me go. When I cried on the phone with my dad after bombing an exam, the construction workers were there to witness it — what a sight for them to see! And when I listened to “Is It Over Now? (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” the man driving the forklift watched my jaw drop to the floor. So on that fateful day when I saw that sign, my knees buckled at the thought of the turmoil this change would cause.
First, we must think about the library displacement. Ask any U.Va. student — we do not simply go to any library. No, in choosing a library, one must factor in the differences in ambience, productivity and sociability. As a frequent library-goer, I have mastered this science. If you’d like to be chatty yet productive, Clem 2 is your spot. To lock in and grind in a dungeon-like environment, Clark — or if you’re brave enough, Clark Stacks is the way to go. For an aesthetic and quiet study session, the Fine Arts Library — or as we like to call it, FARTS — is a great option. However, Alderman’s opening will throw a huge wrench in the typical busyness and crowds that occupy each library by changing the landscape of library science entirely.
With the fateful opening of Alderman, I have also started to consider how all of this will change the macroeconomics of the U.Va lifestyle and community. As a devoted coffee drinker, I am nervous about what will happen to the traffic at our usual coffee shops with the potential opening of another one inside of Alderman. Will this increase in coffee shops add fire to an already tense rivalry between the Corner Starbucks, Newcomb Starbucks and Rookie’s in Clark? If the demand of the Newcomb Starbucks drops, does this mean the line will no longer wrap around the tables and out the door? Eh, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. And, in thinking about the macro effects that Alderman causes, will it have a multiplier effect on us students? That is, will the investment and novelty of a renovated library have a ripple effect on Grounds, leading to us students achieving higher grades? One can only pray!
While we all recognize the different facets of each library, we each have a favorite library towards which we gravitate. How will Alderman affect our consumer behavior? The students that stick to their favorite library are like Coca-Cola drinkers who stick to Coke and Pepsi drinkers — bless their hearts — who stick to Pepsi. Addicts, in short, who have come to define their personalities in relation to their choice of library venue. So what will Alderman do to these people? Will people convert? Will the people in the depths of Clark S tacks emerge from their caves and finally come up for air?
Lastly, we should think about the potential changes in Library Math — you have heard about Girl Math, but allow me to introduce Library Math. It goes like this — when January comes around, classes will just be beginning, meaning 70 percent of students will be rushing to find their semester-long study spots. This implies high occupancy of popular spots such as Clem 2 on weekday afternoons and Sundays. However, with the addition of Alderman as a library, all calculations are thrown out the window. We have no data to estimate how many students are going where or what places will be the least crowded. We are doomed!
While many students are excited about the reopening of Alderman Library, I remain skeptical. It changes everything I know about the science, economics and math of library life at the University, and leaves the future incredibly uncertain. We need to get our brightest minds on this issue ASAP.
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