FAYETTEVILLE -- The Public Library is being loved to death and plans for expansion are five years ahead of what was anticipated when the building opened in 1998 because of the amount of use it receives, a room full of interested residents were told Friday.
The session was intended to give residents an idea of what library officials want in an expanded building and to get input on what users of the library want. Another session is scheduled for 11 a.m. today at the library.
At A Glance
Fayetteville Public Library
The Fayetteville Public Library, which opened in 2004, cost about $28 million to build. Voters approved a three-quarterscent sales tax that collected $19.3 million between 2000 and 2002. An $8.1 million private fundraising campaign included $5.5 million in donations from Jim Blair, Barbara Tyson and the Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation.
Source: Staff Report
"We're creating a library for the future. We're expanding our library for people we will never meet," David Johnson, executive director, told the group over lunch. "Where do we grow from here?"
Last year, there were 575,000 visitors to the library, 1.3 million web visits, 69,000 active card holders and 48,000 attended programs, Johnson said. The summer reading program attracted about 18,000 young people.
"The library is so important to our community. We love the existing library," said Sariah King. "I just wanted to hear about the plans and be a part of the conversation. There's no place more beloved in Fayetteville than this library."
Katie Mihalevich, a Fayetteville architect, and her daughter, Millie, had a mom-daughter date at the session.
"I wanted to see what was going on with the library, where they're going, the challenges, the ideas," Mihalevich said. "Some of them are kind of fun."
Adrienne Shaunfield said she's interested in gardens, food, teaching kitchens and a possible partnership between the library and Fayetteville Farmers Market.
"The library serves a really important role in our community and has the potential to fill more gaps in the community," Shaunfield said.
Questions ranged from how to pay for the expansion to concerns about losing the southern view, if there could be space available for community nonprofits, like the Ozark Literary Council, and if solar collectors and LED lighting are planned. Others said they want more space for the genealogy collection and a 500 to 1,000 seat meeting space. Some wished for an outdoor amphitheater and expansion of the children's library and related event space.
Space for events and meetings and providing more online access for the community are primary reasons for the expansion, according to Jeff Scherer, the architect who designed the original building and who is leading the expansion study. He said the library is reaching a saturation point as far as events and people are being turned away.
The library board voted earlier this year to move forward with an estimated $50 million expansion project that would nearly double the library's footprint by late 2017 or early 2018 and add some 80,000 square feet for technology areas, an auditorium and other uses.
The project, as envisioned in a master plan by Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle architects, includes about half the adjoining City Hospital property. The library's foundation is paying $2 million for the property.
Another round of sessions is planned Oct. 8-11.
NW News on 09/06/2014