Though a location has not been chosen, progress continues on a new library branch in Republic.
The Springfield-Greene County Library District Board of Trustees opened up its search for a builder to construct a new Republic branch. The board approved using a construction manager at risk, a type of building contract where the contractor bids a guaranteed maximum price and oversees the design phase and the building phase of a project.
The board earlier in November reached an agreement with Paragon Architecture to design the new branch. Executive Director Regina Greer Cooper said Paragon’s proposal received the highest scoring during an evaluation by board members; a contract is under development to determine the final cost of the firm’s services.
If a contract with Paragon cannot be agreed upon, Cooper said, then negotiations would begin with Dake Wells Architecture, the runner-up selection in scoring. Three firms submitted proposals for the project.
The library system received about $4.5 million in American Recovery Plan Act grants allocated from the state of Missouri for the expansion of its Republic branch. The board is evaluating two sites for the branch:
• Building a new Republic library just to the north of the current building on land the library district already owns, located at 921 N. Lindsay Ave.. A feasibility study done earlier this year by Dake Wells Architecture found the site is suitable for a new building because of adequate water drainage, good access to utilities and no sinkholes.
• Building a new library on a few acres of land just to the west of the U.S. Highway 60 and James River Freeway interchange. That property is currently owned by the Republic School District, which bought 76 acres for $3.6 million in December 2022. Matt Pearce, superintendent of the school district, said in August that a library-sized building could be built on 5 acres.
A third option, which proposed adding an auditorium and business center to the existing Republic library, was eliminated by the board last month. A reason for the rejection was not given.
Because one of the options involves a possible real estate transaction with the Republic School District, library officials have kept discussions and comparisons of all options inside of closed sessions since August. The board went into closed session Nov. 21, under the real estate exemption of Missouri’s Sunshine Law, (Chapter 610.020.2 of Missouri Revised Statutes), and has done so in several meetings prior.
During Tuesday’s meeting, a Republic resident spoke during the public comments section and asked the board to built on the existing library site because of its more favorable location and proximity to several schools, an early childhood center and senior center.
Cooper said the library district received several emails about the selection, since its previous meeting, where she said the district had to deal with a rash of misinformation posted on Republic-focused Facebook pages.
After the meeting, Cooper said those comments are being given to board members. A timetable for making the decision has not yet been set.
“As soon as we can get all the information that we need for comparison,” Cooper said. “We’re working on that.”
Other ARPA construction projects
Board members also heard progress on two other construction projects partially funded with ARPA grants:
• Final designs for a new auditorium and circulation department at the Library Center, located at 4653 S. Campbell Ave., are nearing completion, Cooper said during the meeting. In addition to those two main priorities, Cooper said the district hopes to also move the café to the front of the building, enclose some of the back storage area, create self-pickup holds, add climate-controlled storage for the gift shop and swap the reading room and teen department.
• Dake Wells Architecture has developed some “very creative plans” to address challenges of upgrading the elevator, boiler and water system at the Midtown Carnegie Library, located at 397 E. Central St, Cooper reported. A bid from Crossland Construction was selected during a previous meeting; that contract is under a review by the library’s attorneys.
