New Look Library

Glenwood-area residents are invited to a grand reopening of the Glenwood Public Library on July 31. Festivities run from 5 - 7 p.m. with an open house, including refreshments and a ribbon cutting.

    The library renovated its children’s area this past spring. According to Glenwood Library Foundation Board member Vonnie Esterling, the library’s board of trustees had talked about renovating the library for many years.  
    They originally talked about an entire addition to the library, but discovered that this would be a major fundraising effort, so the board decided to start with smaller projects.
    Library staff told the board that the children's area really needed to be renovated.
    This was a fact that had been noticed by others.
    “About three years ago, Greg Esterling, who’s the operations manager (of Pinnacle Construction) asked me to come over to the library and look at the wall between the rooms in the children’s area,” said Pete Franks, architect and owner of Franks Design Group in Glenwood.
    Franks and (Greg) Esterling  lifted a couple ceiling tiles and took some photos to determine if the wall was load bearing, which it was, but renovations could be made.
    Franks advised the library board to develop a master plan to meet immediate and future needs.
    The renovation plan was in the talking stages in 2010 when then-director Denise Crawford announced her retirement. The library board refocused their energies at that point on hiring a new director. Angela Campbell was hired in early 2011. Campbell hired a new children’s director, Ted Anderson, in July 2011. With a new staff in place, the library board was ready to talk about renovations again.
    Franks originally designed a modest project that would expand the children’s area, eliminating a wasted room and making additional space for the collection. His estimated cost was $182,773.00, which included construction fees, architect fees, and furnishings. An additional project for a teen room was designed in case the library came into additional funds.
    The renovation money came from the Library Foundation and donations from the Filomena Robinson, Harriett Tubbs Schoening and Paul D. Records estates. The funds for the furnishings were provided by Friends of the Library.
    “Every penny we get that is not spent on expenses is given to the library,”  said Friends member Barb Taenzler. “We had our annual salad luncheon, where we raffled off a quilt donated by Betty Barnes. And we have a used book sale that we hold in conjunction with Keg Creek Days.”
    In February, Campbell and Anderson, known to young library patrons as “Mr. Ted,” moved the entire children's collection to the annex. The library staff prepared to work in a construction zone for several months.
    In March 2012, Pinnacle Construction bid the project at a lower cost than expected, allowing the board to renovate the entire children’s area, including the creation of a teen room.
    Patrons are certain to notice one changed aspect as soon as they walk downstairs to the youth department – space.
    The children’s area gained more shelving space for the collection.  A large desk was removed and replaced with a smaller, original Carnegie desk. A large closet, that, for reasons unknown to even the staff, was called the “meditation room,” became a smaller closet to accommodate more public space.
    A storage space beyond the old desk was turned into a common room in which patrons can hold meetings or have special events.
    The more noticeable reconstruction/renovation comes from the teen room, located at the bottom of the basement stairs.
    “We had a staff room that nobody used, so I said, well, what if we take out that wall and use that space (for the teens),” Campbell said. “Then Pete realized there was brick back there.”
    That’s when the designers and librarians realized they could create a trendier, loft feel. They also discovered renovations are not all fun and games.
    “When we opened it up, we noticed that a steel support beam had been removed during an earlier renovation,” Campbell said. “Basically, it was only a matter of time before the first floor caved in.”
    The steel beam had to be incorporated into the design.  Once the beam was replaced, they kept the steel exposed. Original boards from the Carnegie building were used to make shelving as opposed to being thrown away. An original boiler room with a brick arch for an entryway is now used as a “Comic Cave” for graphic novels, a popular trend.
    Anderson and Campbell know their audience, so who better than teenagers to help with decorating?  The teenage patrons helped pick out the area rug to cover part of the cement floor, the lime green couch and the orange chair.
    All of this renovation was done in the span of two months, at a cost of $172,209.64.
    “It was supposed to be done in two months, and they hit it on target,” Campbell said.
    Moving day was May 23 - ironically, the same day the summer reading program started.
    “It was well organized chaos,” Campbell said. “I was so grateful. Ted and I moved all those books to the annex by ourselves, and we had so much help moving back. A lot of the construction guys just pitched in.”
    “The coolest thing was to see their joy to be able to see everything go back into place and decide where it goes,” Vonnie Esterling said. “I sent a bunch of our guys down to help move back in. My staff is always open to helping other people. We don’t get to see people's response usually, it was so neat to see their (the library staff’s) joy.”