Designers of Kennedy Library Make More Changes in Plans

Several additional changes will be made in the design of the proposed Kennedy Library before plans are submitted to the U.S. General Services Administration for a study of the library complex's environmental impact on Cambridge.

Robert E. Burke, an official of the Kennedy Library Corp., said last week that recent modifications in the plans call for using more brick in place of concrete and eliminating some pavement in favor of more open space.

Burke said the changes are being made to "bring the budget into line with the design," because inflation over the years since the corporation's fund-raising drive have taken a sizeable bite from the Library's construction fund.

Better Fit

However, the changes would make the library fit in better with the Harvard Square area. One major criticism of the library has been that its design is inappropriate to its surroundings.

Other changes which have previously been made include a scaling down of the museum to a height of about 85 feet, approximately the same height as Eliot House.

Burket said the final plans will be ready by the time a consultant is selected in January to do the environmental impact study. He said that the plan submitted to the consultant would be "similar in configuration" to the original model.

"By the time the consultant is chosen in January we should have a project we can afford to build, one that is fitting from a design viewpoint, and one that can be as responsive as possible to the community," Burke said.