Center for Social Justice & Civil Liberties
Details
| Architect | LPA, Inc. |
| Completion Date | May, 2012 |
| Client | Riverside Community College District |
| Location | RIverside, CA |
Overview
Originally constructed in 1926, the building underwent an extensive renovation including a complete demolition of the interior of the building. After being hidden for more than 50 years, the Spanish baroque facade of the historic Citrus Belt Savings and Loan Building was restored to its original appearance. The second floor of the structure included 2 separate storage areas/archiving spaces, which were conditioned and humidity controlled (60 degrees, 40% humidity).
The 10,000 sf building houses a media and digital resources center, a Kid’s Zone/Education center, permanent archiving, preservation and display of the Okubo Collection, visiting exhibits, and a guest scholar program. The Okubo collection includes more than 8,000 pieces of art, professional papers and personal memorabilia, and the center will provide an anchor archive for the study and understanding of both the Japanese American and other civil liberties and social justice issues in modern American history. A large portion of the collection consists of Miné Okubo’s paintings and sketches, (over 2,000 pieces), which she collected over her lifetime and which have never been exhibited. The facility will possibly house other historical documents owned by the City of Riverside, including such works as the Harada Family archival and artifact collections.
