Madison Co. Library expansion project nearing completion

The library expansion was funded by a $1.5 million capital outlay grant from the state; $600,000 in SPLOST tax dollars; Athens Regional Library System services and assistance; donations from the Friends of the Library and the library board of trustees and the Estate of Jere Ayers.

Besides extensive renovation, the library has nearly doubled in size – from 10,000 square feet to 17,500 square feet.

Moak says the facility should now be large enough to serve the county’s projected population through 2020.

Work is wrapping up these days on Phase III – the final stage of the library’s construction/renovation, which includes a 3,243 square foot children area, complete with an auditorium, children’s restroom, computers and homework study area.

A dedication and ribbon-cutting service will be held at the end of this month to officially open the new library to the public.

The library’s transformation starts at the new sliding-glass door entrance, which opens to a high-ceilinged, light-filled vestibule.

“As one lady said as she came in ‘wow, it feels like a real library now,’” Moak said. “And it really does.”

There are men’s and ladies’ restrooms in this area, and a room to the right of the entrance is the location of the new larger meeting room, which includes large windows to let in plenty of light and a full-size kitchen.

The main lobby area of the library will contain a larger circulation desk, new book selections, an audio/video section, newspapers, magazines and other periodicals, and a comfortable seating area near the window.

Further along toward the back will be the fiction and non-fiction areas, along with a “young adult” reading area.

“We will have the capacity to carry 100,000 reading items,” branch manager Suzie Degrasse said. “The state has cut back on funding for materials, but when there is funding, we will have the room for it.” The library’s former capacity is for 32,226 items.

Degrasse said it’s been good, though sometimes stressful, to have remained open during construction. “It’s been a gradual change for us and for our patrons,” she said. “The staff, everyone, has been very supportive during it all.”

Degrasse said she urges regular patrons to have patience as they go through the final stages of this process. “We’ve expanded so much, but most stuff is still around the circulation desk,” she said. “We haven’t yet been able to spread our wings and fly.”

And of all the libraries new things, Degrasse said she is most excited about the new children’s area. “It’s going to be great,” she said.
The Friends of the Library will also have their own space for book sales and other events near the front and a room in the back for storage and meetings.

A smaller 420-foot meeting/classroom room is located near the rear of the library, as is a large computer lab, which is flanked by two “quiet study” rooms.

A $25,000 grant from the USDA will allow for upgrades of the library’s computers.

A genealogy room is located behind the computer lab, which will be furnished with items from the Madison County Heritage Foundation.
“I’m very proud for this county,” Degrasse said. “We’re really lucky.”

The ribbon-cutting will be held Saturday, March 31, at 10 a.m. at the library, which is located at 1315 Hwy. 98 West.