SEQUIM — North Olympic Library System officials expect to be able to move into an expanded Sequim Public Library building by the winter of 2023.
That “feels like a long way away, but it’s not that far away,” said Executive Director Noah Glaude at a virtual board meeting on Jan. 27, when the board approved the libraries’ $2.66 million capital budget that includes $2 million for the Sequim project.
The board also approved other projects for 2022 that include up to $100,000 for repairs and maintenance to the Port Angeles Library’s parking lot, up to $150,000 to change Port Angeles’ lighting to LEDs and to install an advanced control system, $130,000 for a bookmobile, and $75,000 to replace the core networking equipment at all four libraries the system oversees — Port Angeles, Sequim, Forks and Clallam Bay.
The Sequim project will completely renovate the existing 6,000-square-foot building and add at least 2,000 square feet.
“We’d like to expand as much as possible, but that is, of course, mostly restrained by our budget,” Glaude said.
The project adds more space for studying, computers and the staffing area, energy-efficient systems, more accessible bathrooms, and it improves safety and emergency exits for the meeting room.
Glaude said the board and administration also would like to add distinct spaces for children and teens, small conference and study rooms, a larger meeting room and ways to make the collections more accessible.
“It will likely look and feel like a whole new building,” he said.
Library staff met a few weeks ago with the firm SHKS Architects, which plans to finish the design process this spring. There will be more opportunities for input from the community, staff and trustees, Glaude said.
The project will tentatively go out to bid in the summer, NOLS documents say, with construction expected to take nine to 12 months to complete.
Glaude said the new design is unrelated to one created in 2018 for a failed bond measure to construct a new 17,000-square-foot building.
“We still believe the larger design presented in 2018 was the best solution and what the community needed, and usage statistics back this up, but the current expansion and renovation will still allow us to make significant improvements with the resources available to us,” he said in an interview.
During construction, library officials plan to temporarily relocate services somewhere in the Sequim area. Glaude said they’ve toured six sites so far and continue to work with property managers with hopes to find a location by the spring and move into a temporary space by the fall.
Funding
A two-year-old estimate for this expansion and renovation project came to $4.8 million for a rough conceptual design, Glaude said.
SHKS Architects will develop a new estimate based on its design and current construction costs, Glaude said, and “the new estimate could significantly increase or decrease.”
While offering library services during the last two years, the COVID-19 pandemic “made it very clear that we simply need more space in the building,” Glaude said.
“We were bursting at the seams before the pandemic, and it’s just not feasible to squeeze things in the way we could before the pandemic,” he said, including reducing public computers from 12 to three for adequate spacing.
Along with more flexible spaces, Glaude said the pandemic showed staff they need more private and designated spaces for patrons and staff, such as for online meetings and job interviews and telehealth appointments.
As of this week, NOLS has about $4.26 million for the project. That includes $2 million from a state Department of Commerce Library Capital Improvement Program Grant, $2 million from NOLS’ capital reserves funded by timber revenue, and the rest from an estate donation, individual donations and Port of Port Angeles’ community partner program.
Glaude said library system officials are seeking more grants, and library supporters expect to launch a community fundraising effort this spring with drawings and a cost estimate available.
Donations to the project are accepted at nols.org and northolympiclibraryfoundation.org, with tax-deductible donations to the North Olympic Library Foundation.
For more about the Sequim project, visit nols.org/sequimlibraryproject.
The library system’s next board meeting is 5:30 p.m. Feb. 22 via Zoom. More details are at nols.org.
