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.