DANVILLE – On Monday, work will begin at the Danville Public Library that will extend tile surfaces and replace the original, 15-year-old carpeting.
The $167,000 project includes carpet contract, shelf moving contract and architectural fees, according to Suzie Halftown, library business manager.
“We’ve been able to carefully put back funds over the years and accumulate a reserve for when this time came,” Halftown said. “The wonderful thing is, we are able to do this without asking the city for money and without having to close the library entirely.”
In another project, the library has been gradually having furniture reupholstered. The library opened in November 1995.
Library visitors will have to detour from the lobby through the first floor meeting room and children’s department for access to the library. A temporary check desk will be set up in the meeting room. Tile, matching that in the lobby, will replace carpet into the entry area beyond the glass double doors, surround the check out desk area and extend to the elevator and second-floor stairway accesses. The second floor will be closed during this work.
“For anyone needing items from the second floor, library staff can retrieve materials via an employees-only area,” said Phill Cohee, assistant library director. “Public Internet access will be down from Feb. 22 until the project is completed for two to three weeks.”
Activities planned for the meeting room will experience little to no inconvenience including the upcoming used book sale.
The library had moved up the date of its Spring Used Book Sale to avoid conflicts with the renovation work, but vendors were ready sooner. The “Not-Quite-Spring” book sale will take place in the lobby and first-floor meeting room from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Feb. 27.
In addition to the usual paperbacks, hardbacks, videos and tapes for children and adults, the selection of used magazines will be quite a bit larger.
Trends have found that more people are using online versions of magazine back issues, so the Danville library will move a lot of past issues to the sale. The local staff surveyed patrons for six months to see which back issues of magazines were actually being used. The result was a decision to reduce the number of back issues from five to two years.
With the library’s subscription to Wilson Select Plus, available through the LINC computerized card catalog, patrons have access to the full text articles of 2,500 magazine titles.
At the book sale, magazines will be sold in bundles, rather than as single issues, in the lobby area.
On March 1, Pro Lift Movers will begin moving entire book shelf units. Shelves will roll out, old carpeting removed and replaced by carpet squares.
“Carpet squares are what libraries are going to,” Cohee said. “Carpet squares allow for torn or stained areas to be removed and replaced more easily and independently.”
Pro Lift Movers will work two areas of the library at a time. After relocating some first-floor shelves, workers move to the second floor. The movers and Carpet Weavers will alternate work spaces until the project is completed.
“During this process, some shelving units may be pretty tight, in which case a staff member can retrieve any items needed,” Cohee said.
“The reading section will have very limited seating as the shelving units are moved around during the project. Library staff will be moving chairs computer tables, computer equipment and other furniture out of their regular areas to make room for temporarily relocating book shelf units.
“We know it’s going to inconvenience people some, but not for long and in the meantime we all will have to be patient with the mess,” Cohee said.
Call the library at 477-5220 if you have questions.
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