Bayview/Linda Brooks-Burton Branch Library

The original Bayview/Anna E. Waden Branch Library was opened as a storefront facility in 1927. It was the 13th branch in the San Francisco Public Library system, replacing a "library station" that had been established in 1921. In 1969, a red brick building was built on the corner of the 3rd Street and Revere Avenue in the Bayview/Hunters Point district. With a bequest from Anna E. Waden, a clerical employee of the City of San Francisco. Miss Waden's gift of $185,700 paid for the development of this cooperative community project. The building was completed in February 1969, and the formal dedication took place on July 12, 1969. The architect was John S. Bolles & Associates and the contractor was Nibbi Brothers. The façade included a sculpture by Jacques Overhoff.

During an in-depth community assessment process undertaken as part of the Branch Library Improvement Program, which included many community meetings and input from neighborhood groups, it was decided to replace the building in favor of a new, larger branch library for the Bayview /Hunters Point Community. During the demolition of the old building, a historic advertising sign was found on the façade of a neighboring building.

The Bayview Branch Library is the 23rd completed project in the bond-funded program managed by Public Works. The new, seismically safe and accessible 9,000 square-foot library features a designated teen area, a children’s area with interactive learning spaces, an expanded collection of books and materials with a large Chinese-language collection, more public computers, two quiet study rooms, an interior courtyard and a meeting room with after-hours access for community meetings and events. Environmental features include solar panels, two living roof gardens and an innovative air-circulation system. The project required that at least 30 percent of the construction companies and trades building the new branch were certified as Local Business Enterprises (LBE). The City far exceeded that threshold, with more than 68 percent LBE participation – surpassing all other similar projects. A key feature of the new library building is a display of photograms created by artist and Bayview resident Ron Saunders. In addition, the building façade features 10 glass panels that depict images from historic photographs of the people and places from the Bayview neighborhood.