Expansion @ Bethlehem

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow...

2010-05-12T09:12:00.001-04:00

..creeps in this p...Oh wait! That's not right!!!

Tomorrow!!!! It's the Grand Re-Opening. Drop in any time between 3 and 7 pm here at the library. We've spends two days moving books around. The Friends of the Library ARE AWESOME! Those volunteers came out here from all over the county and got those books moved. They not only moved the books to their new places, the Friends stayed to shelf-read and straighten all the books! You just can't ask for better Friends than that.

Here are the current pictures - the last of the work and the new look of the expansion. If you can't make it to the open house, just come back here to the blog (probably by Monday), to see how it went. I'll have more photos posted soon.

Maintenance finishing the tile work.

Friends moving books.

The final results.

Nearly There

2010-05-05T09:22:00.000-04:00

Well, the paint is done. The shelves, even the recently scavenger ones, are all in place. It's time to clear out the last of the extraneous stuff (a phrase which here means, that huge gray desk and some spare boards) and put the books in!!!

We can't wait to have that space. It's been a tight few weeks for the children's section. As you can see - it'll be worth the wait.

May 13th, May 13th, May 13th!

2010-04-27T12:47:00.000-04:00

Any guesses as to when we'll hold our Grand Re-Opening? You got it! Thursday, May 13th, from 3 - 7 PM, here at the Bethlehem Branch Library. The whole library will be open for use (at long last), and there will be art on display from local artists and writers. Of course, there will be free snacks, too!!!

In the meantime, here are the most recent renovations.

Juvenile Literature Shelves

Juvenile Non-Fiction Shelves

Newly Opened Hallway for the Two Restrooms

How much is a picture worth?

2010-04-14T12:56:00.001-04:00

This is the picture post. It speaks for itself. :)

First wall gone.

Second wall gone.

Children's shelves.

Fancy end on the children's shelves.

Computers in their new location.

And DVDs moved.

Easy Squeezie...

...all the Easy books and the Board Books got squeezed into the Juvenile and Juvenile Non-Fiction while we shift shelves.

New Book display for Juvenile fiction.

Hope you enjoyed the photos...more to come!

We've Started at Last!

2010-04-12T11:48:00.000-04:00

The renovations to expand into the other half of the building started Thursday! The estimte is 1-3 weeks before it's finished. So watch out for moving books, misplaced shelves, and various other forms of organized chaos.

Expect the "Grand Re-Opening" sometime at the end of April or the beginning of May. It will be on a Thursday, from 3-7 p.m. and there will be local art and light refreshments served. We'll keep pictures posted as the renovation continues.

The sheetrock has been removed on the empty side. You can see the computer wiring on the left - it will be moving to the current "Easy" section. The sheetrock-free bit on the right has been partiall cut through to our side, but not yet removed.

They've got their supplies ready...we can't wait!

The Ides of March is Awesome!

2010-03-03T09:52:00.001-05:00

Ok, so maybe the Ides of March hasn't always been that awesome, but for us, it's looking good.

The expansion is set to start in mid-March (no specific date). We've already been planning our new layout. I'll post the picture here - it may be too hard to see. If that's the case, come to the library and take a look.

Needless to say, we can't wait to get in there. Think of what we could do with 1000 extra square feet! We'll definitely need it for next year's poetry reading...we had 50 people in this side of the library, and it was tight. It was great, our readers were so engaging, but it was standing room only. The expansion will really give us the space to hold an event!

(insert shameless begging for expansion fund money here......)

In order to expand, you must first...

2010-02-10T11:54:00.001-05:00

...get smaller!

Come take a look at our new donation collection box. Look familiar? That's right! It's the library...but smaller.

Mr. Emmett Pruett, a local Alexander County craftsman, built a model of the library for us to use as a collection box. Then, he donated it! If everyone followed Mr. Pruett's example, ~~we'd have dozens of boxes~~ we would have our expansion already finished as people gave what they could to help us make the library grow.

We're more than half way there, and we may be able to start even before we've collected all $1,500.

In the meantime, here are a few a pictures of the Library box. It really is amazing. We are truly grateful for Mr. Pruett's gift, and for everything our community has given to help us expand.

Here We Go!!!

2010-01-29T11:44:00.000-05:00

After almost two years, Alexander County finally gave us the go-ahead to expand into the other half of the library building.

We've been imagining what we'd do with all that space since the county first bought the building, and now we can act on those plans - at least, the realistic ones! All we're waiting for is the money to renovate. Only $1,500...and we're already halfway there, thanks to generous donations from folks in the community.

We'll be posting updates on our progress here whenever something new comes up. Until then, here are a couple photos to get you started.

These walls on the right will be coming out...

...to open the library into this space.