Scenes from our Groundbreaking Ceremony, June 16

Athens-Clarke County Library Board members, staff, local leaders and patrons of all ages celebrated the start of our renovation/expansion with a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday, June 16, 2011.

Look at these shiny shovels provided by The Christman Company!

We also used these:

A big crowd of patrons, young and old; staff, local leaders and library directors from around the state gathered out front for the ceremony. In this photo, Athens-Clarke County Library Director Kathryn Ames addresses the crowd:

Cecil Bentley, Chairman of the Library's Board of Trustees, also spoke:

The crowd also heard from Athens-Clarke County Commissioners Jared Bailey and Harry Sims.

After the speeches, it was time to dig!

Then everyone enjoyed cookies and lemonade from the Friends of the Athens-Clarke County Library.

After the brief ceremony, it was time for the contractors to get back to work.

This week, workers are taking down the metal awning that hangs over the walkway out front. This work makes way for our new lobby, which will have a snack area with tables and vending machines and an all-new Library Store. The addition on the front of the building will also house a new 300-seat meeting room/auditorium, which can be split up into smaller meeting spaces.

Temporary Entrance is OPEN

This morning, the Library's front entrance was closed, and our temporary entrance was opened for the first time. Now patrons must enter and exit the building from the temporary rear entrance.

We have moved our Circulation Department (including the check out desk) to the rear of the building where the Talking Book Center was formerly located. Be on the lookout for signs directing you around the building.

Thing are REALLY going to get hopping now... the construction fence has been set up around the front entrance of the building and traffic has been rerouted away from the traffic circle (where our book drops used to be). Expect to see some demolition work soon as the big columns out front will be coming down to make way for the expansion and our new lobby!

We'd also like to take this opportunity to invite you to our groundbreaking ceremony this Thursday at 11:15 a.m. Please come to our Family Sing-a-long in the auditorium at 10:30 a.m. and stay for our groundbreaking ceremony to help celebrate our first steps toward an exciting, improved Library for everyone!

Temporary Entrance is under construction today!

Workers are installing our new temporary entrance at the back of the Library! First, they removed the last set of windows on the side of the building.

The temporary entrance leads into the office where the Northeast Georgia Talking Book Center was located.

The Talking Book Center has temporarily relocated to the Oconee County Library in Watkinsville at 1080 Experiment Station Road. You can still reach the TBC at its usual number, 1-800-531-2063 or by calling 706-310-3650.

Once our temporary entrance is complete, the front entrance and lobby will be closed for construction. Everyone will enter and leave the library through this new entrance at the back, and our Circulation Department will be moved to the back of the building as well.