The 1970s brought another push for expansion to the Library. Though it had recently added a branch, the Downtown location was again over capacity. An article in the Ann Arbor News in June of 1971 called the Library’s need to expand “critical.” “When the present Ann Arbor Library…was constructed, the book collection numbered 96,500. Today, the shelves are crammed with more than 150,000 books.”* The population, too, had grown, and the Library was serving more than twice the number of patrons it had in 1957.
The public, again enormously supportive, voted to establish a separate millage for the Library, clearing the way for an addition that doubled the size of the original building. The architect Donald Van Curler was selected to design the addition, which was completed on time and under budget in 1974. The new portion of the building was built to support additional stories, should the library someday need more space, and included a garden courtyard on the south side of the building.
In 1977, the Library opened another branch west of downtown in the Maple Village shopping center. The West Branch later moved across Jackson Road to its present location in the Westgate shopping mall.
*“Public Library’s Expansion Called ‘Critical’ Need” Ann Arbor News 10 Jun 1971.