When a renovation project at the Midtown Carnegie Library is complete, people won’t have to depend on an elevator to access certain floors.
But they will finally be able to depend on an elevator.
“That elevator has been down for around a year,” said Eva Pelkey, branch manager. “It has worked sporadically, but has had chronic issues that we will finally get the chance to fix.”
Project to affect Midtown’s services
The library, located at 397 E. Central St., will close to the public on May 6 so that an about 10-month renovation process can begin. All services at that branch, including book returns in its parking lot, will be closed during the project. Its 21 employees will be relocated across the district, as well, Pelkey said.
Some services have been relocated, as well:
- Story times and book discussions will be held at The Fairbanks Community Hub, located at 1126 N. Broadway Ave.
- The Community Fridge will be relocated to The Library Station, located at 2535 N. Kansas Expressway.
- The Computer Training Center will move to The Library Center, located at 4653 S. Campbell Ave.
The closure affects the system’s only makerspace. Pelkey said its 3-D printer and other digitization tools will be moved to The Library Center, but other features will not be available because of their difficulty to move.
Central High School students who congregate at the library after school will need to make other arrangements. Pelkey said there is no formal arrangement between the library and school, but has worked to let students and parents know it won’t be available.
“For decades, Central students have come over after school to study, participate in programs and more,” Pelkey said. “We have been getting the word out as much as we can to let them know this is on the horizon.”
The Ozarks Literacy Council’s administrative offices at the library have been moved to Lay Hall, located at 1014 N. Benton Ave. on the campus of Drury University. Executive Director Amy McGee Jardell said Drury responded to its need for finding a temporary location for its 600-square-foot office.
The group offers tutoring and books to children and adults who need help with reading skills, and those services are provided at public places such as other libraries, Jardell said. The space will be used for administrative offices and storage of materials, and it's a bigger space than what it has at the Midtown Carnegie branch.
“We'll have enough rooms for books and all of our operations,” Jardell said. “There appears to be enough space to where, once we get settled, we could have a program of some kind. I have a feeling there will be some opportunity to utilize more space.”
Other parts of the council's arrangement with libraries, such as a courier service, will continue, and training sessions will be held in other library conference rooms.
Renovation will improve access, upgrade HVAC
The library has planned a $3 million renovation project that will replace aging systems and ADA compliance issues in the more than 100-year-old building. About $1.47 million in American Recovery Plan Act funds have been granted for the project.
The project will repair the elevator inside the building, Pelkey said, so that it provides full access to all three floors, giving all patrons the ability to get to meeting rooms, departments and other features.
As part of renovations to the building’s north entrance, an exterior elevator will be replaced with enclosed ramps. The building’s HVAC system will be replaced, and new water piping will be installed.
Dake Wells Architecture was hired to design the improvements, and Crossland Construction is the general contractor.
The Midtown Carnegie Library was originally constructed in 1905 with a grant from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, who helped fund the construction of more than 1,600 libraries across the U.S.
Pelkey said the library has been renovated several times in its history, including once in the 1950s and once in the 1970s. The project starting in May will be the most significant renovation since one in the 1990s, when the district’s headquarters was moved from there to The Library Center.
Pelkey said staff members are excited about what the project will offer its patrons once completed.
“We’re sad to close our doors for any period of time, and we’ll miss our patrons,” Pelkey said. “But this is a great opportunity for us to improve access to our busiest floors.”
