There is some general discussion here: http://www.ala.org/tools/ada-and-libraries . From that site: "8.1 General. In addition to the requirements of section 4, the design of all public areas of a library shall comply with 8, including reading and study areas, stacks, reference rooms, reserve areas, and special facilities or collections." They also indicate a preference for at least 42 inch spaces, but I am unsure as to enforcement and would gather that this only applies to new construction/renovation. Joel On 8/3/16 9:40 AM, Angela R Cope wrote: > > I'm searching through the Maps-L archives to see if we've talked about > this before. There is lots of talk of how high to stack map cabinets > and then finding reference to the space and equipment article from > 1961. Is there a newer article on map library space planning than this > one: /Map Libraries: Space and Equipment/ by Catherine I. Bahn, */SLA > Geography & Map Division Bulletin/*, v. 46, pp. 3-17 (1961) > > > Does it say anything in the 1998 Maplibrarianship : an introduction by > Mary Lynette Larsgaard? > > > Best of luck. > > > Angie > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > *From:* Maps-L: Map Librarians, etc. <[log in to unmask]> on > behalf of Joel Kovarsky <[log in to unmask]> > *Sent:* Wednesday, August 3, 2016 7:02 AM > *To:* [log in to unmask] > *Subject:* Re: [MAPS-L] Best Practices - Aisle Width between map cases > > I have a question. Is any decision here in the USA impacted by library > compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act? I gather most of > the distances being discussed comply with that standard, but is there > an exemption for stacks not used by most public clients? > > Joel Kovarsky > > > On 8/3/16 12:39 AM, Brendan Whyte wrote: >> >> We've just installed 10,000 drawers of 1m deep bespoke US-made cases >> (with proud handles additional to the 1m depth) in a compactus with >> 1.01m aisles (case front to case front, ignoring handles). >> >> A standard sized user [i.e. non-obese/non-American] can stand behind >> the open drawer to remove/reshelve maps, and the drawers themselves >> are less deep than the 1m cabinet, so can be removed from the cases >> by two people, one each side of the drawer. >> >> >> The aisle width was intended to allow drawers to be physically >> removed/replaced, but still maximise rows of cases and minimise aisle >> width. (and fit sensibly in our stack space which is studded with >> pillars). >> >> >> Brendan Whyte >> >> National Library of Australia >> >> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> >> Date: Tue, 2 Aug 2016 02:26:04 +0000 >> From: Kathy Stroud <[log in to unmask]> >> Subject: Best Practices - Aisle Width between map cases >> >> All, >> >> It seems I've seen this somewhere but I can't locate it. Is there a >> best practice distance for placing map cases facing each other >> (what's the aisle width between map cases with drawers opening facing >> each other?) We're going through re-envisioning our map space and >> I'll hoping for numbers to add weight to my estimates. I already >> know that a 40" aisle is not going to be adequate for a 40" deep map >> case. It would be impossible to get drawers in and out when needed >> and be difficult to work around fully opened drawers. My gut feeling >> tells me that 48" is the minimum and 56" would be ideal. This is an >> area that is open access to patrons so it's not just the librarians >> that need to be able to maneuver in the space. >> >> Anyone have any authoritative sources? >> >> Thanks in advanced, >> >> Kathy >> >