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.

New location for outdoor book drops

Things are really starting to get going on our renovation project! On Friday, our exterior book drops were relocated from the traffic circle near our entrance to the rear of the parking lot in anticipation of our new temporary entrance (which should be open in a couple weeks). Don't worry about the orange silt fence around our tree in the traffic circle... the tree (which came from a seedling of Athens' famous "Tree that owns itself") will be just fine. The traffic circle will be closed off to reroute a storm line as part of the construction project.

Another thing to think about: Parking! With part of our parking lot closed off to accommodate construction equipment, please note that overflow parking is available at the soccer fields next door. It's the next entrance off Dudley Drive from the Library's driveway.

Construction has officially started!

The construction trailer was set up on Tuesday, May 24. The project is under way!

Within the next few weeks, we will have a new temporary entrance at the rear of the building, and the front entrance will be closed. Book drops will be relocated to the rear of the building as well.

See What's Growing at Your Library!

Background

In the past 20 years, the ways in which people use the Library have changed. Collections of library books, DVDs, CDs and other materials continue to grow. Demand for computers with Internet access has skyrocketed. Library users pack free classes and programs. The upcoming renovation and expansion project will help the Athens-Clarke County Library better serve the community with upgraded technology and added space.


Project Description

Construction will begin in May 2011 and is expected to last 20 months. We will remain open throughout construction, but some departments and services will change as construction requires:

• Entrance and book drop will temporarily move to rear of building.
• Traffic flow and parking will change because of the need to reroute stormwater away from the building.
• Parts of the building will be temporarily closed during construction, but we'll provide good signage so you can find what you need!

The expansion will add 20,000 square feet to the existing 63,000-square-foot building. The addition will be built on the front of the building where the lobby is now and along the side of the building that faces the parking lot.

The entire building will be renovated, including repairing aging areas, upgrading the building's technology capabilities, updating mechanical systems to make them more energy efficient, and reorganizing space to better fit library services.

Special Features

• Updated Children's Area with a larger storytelling space and more room for books.
• Larger space for more computers. The data infrastructure, including wiring, bandwidth and electrical capacity, will be upgraded to ensure delivery of high speed Internet in all areas.
• Additional Shelving for expanding collections.
• 2,000 square feet added to the Heritage Room, which houses special genealogy and local history collections.
• A new 300-seat multipurpose program area which can be broken up into smaller spaces to meet the growing need for more public meeting space in our community. The room will have wireless Internet access, web conferencing and audiovisual equipment.
  
• Self-checkout kiosks and automated check-in equipment.
• A vending/café area and Library Store in the new lobby.
• The project will conform to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards under the Green Building Act of 2006.

Total Project Cost	$10,215,240
SPLOST 2005 Funds:	$8,215,240
State of Georgia Funds:	$2,000,000

Architect:  David Moore, Craig Gaulden Davis