Work Progresses on the Old Section Remodel

To start off, I had to show you this fun photo of one of our construction crew driving this big machine into our parking lot.

There's been a lot of work done on the old section of the library.  Most of the framing is now complete.  You can tell from this picture how the clerestory roof is coming - its just peeking out over the top of the old building.  The second photo is a bit better, and shows how high the new roof is.

Here is the ceiling from the inside.  You can see the clerestory windows along the top edge.  They will match the ones we have now in the new atrium at the entrance to our new building.

The drywall has arrived, and is just waiting to be installed.  Here we see a pallet of drywall waiting in the old General Collections area.

This photo shows the drywall for the new book store and the other half of the old library.

This last image shows our new fireplace.  We're standing in what was the old children's area, about where Story Time used to be held.

More Work on the Old Side

The work continues to progress on the older side of the building.  The demolition part is almost over, and most of the framing has been completed.  Here's a few photos to show you what's going on.

This first photo is actually taken outside a wall!  We're looking through the wall of what will one day be the janitor's closet down our stairwell to the basement.  The janitor's closet will be located in what used to be the west end of our staff area.

This next photo shows one of our construction crew working in what used to be our old staff break room.  It will soon be the new public restrooms of the new remodel.

You can see the sunlight streeming into the old library with this photo.  We're looking at the old hallway, which now has all the beams installed for the clerestory ceiling.  Our old doorway is now closed off by a temporary wall.  Once the remodeling is completed, that old entry will be an emergency exit.

The material above all our old windows has been removed.  They will construct metal overhangs to match the new building.

With this picture, we can see that the beams supporting the clerestory are completely installed.  This raised area will have windows to let in light in the same way the atrium windows do.

We're looking east from the old Children's section of the library.  You can see what remains of Leslie Twitchell's lovely mural on the left-hand side.

In front of our old east windows, we're going to have a gas fireplace.  As you can see, it has arrived and is already installed.  This is going to be a cozy, wonderful area to sit and read in!

This final photo shows what will be the new Library Foundation Bookstore.  The framing for both the sales area and the storage space has been completed.  The doorway will open out into the hallway.

Work Continues on the Old Side of the Building

While we're enjoying our new building, the work progresses on the old section.  They are in the process gutting the interior, and putting up new supports and wall segments.

This first photo shows the length of the old building.  We're looking from the old staff area through the former General Collections (Adult) area to the east windows.

Its not everyday that you see a construction vehicle in the middle of a library! This one is helping to install the new support beams for the clerestory ceiling which will run down the old hallway.  You can see a gaping hole where the former front doorway was.

Outside, two of our wonderful construction crew go by, discussing the work.

We're in the old General Collections section looking south.  You can see where the new support beams are going up.

We're looking up into the new construction area.  In the background, you can see the outside walls of the atrium.  The new clerestory roof will be the same height as the atrium roof.

This final picture looks like it was taken outside, but we're still in the old section of the building. I couldn't get any closer because of the construction work going on, but I wanted to show you where the new Library Foundation Bookstore is going to be.  You can see the wall supports are now installed, and it will take up most of the space that used to be the Young Adult area.

Landscaping Begins

Spruce It Up, our landscapers, have begun working on the landscaping around the new section of the building.  In the last few days, they've been putting down the sprinkler system.  Today, they've been working along 1st North.

The landscaping will eventually go all around the building as well.  This is the west wall.  The window you see is the one on the west wall of the Community Room (Adult Collection).

The landscaping will continue along our south walls, and the island by the drive-through Book Drop will be completely planted.

Raising the Roof in the Old Section!

I have some wild photos for you today! During the last few days, the construction crew has been removing the roof from the old section of the building.  These first few photos were taken last Friday, and show the roof removed from the old hallway area.  This section will have a raised atrium roof to let in the light.

This photo was taken from the old audio books collection area.  You can see the remainder of Leslie Twitchell's lovely Idaho mural to the right.  Our old entrance doors are now blocked off.  They will eventually be an emergency exit.

These fun pictures were taken right down the middle of the old section.  If you keep heading down that hallway, you'd get to the new side of the building.

The walls are still coming down as well.  This is our old staff break room and restroom area.  This will eventually be public restrooms.

This photo was taken from the farthest north west corner of the old building.  The window is our east window where the Adult Collection used to be.  You can see the sunlight streeming down through the opening in the roof.

This is what our old entrance looks like!  You can see the monument to the previous library (the one that went in the flood) out the window.  This area is now a construction zone.  No one can be admitted here without a hardhat.

Here are a couple of views of the hole in the roof.

This photo was taken from the farthest south east corner of the old building.  Its looking through the entire youth sections.  Again, you can see the sunlight coming in through the hole in the roof.

This final photo shows our flagpole and flag that sits out in front of the old library.  With the construction flags, it looks like a carnival!

The Parking Lot Gets Paved, and the Walls Come Down in the Old Section

Well, it finally stopped raining long enough for the crew to be able to pave our parking lot! In a few days, they'll paint the lines, and it will give us 10 additional parking spaces.  We'll also get back the two or three spaces that the construction tape had blocked off by the Tabernacle.

This first photo shows how lovely the fresh new blacktop looks.  You can see a member of the construction crew going over it with the steem roller.  On the building, you can see two holes - they will both be Book Drop holes.  The bigger one will not be operational until we get our sorting equipment, which is sometime in the fall.  Once the slot is installed, the smaller one will be available for drop-offs.

This is a view down our new driveway.  Its on the west side of the building, and will be a one-way only lane with the entrance from 1st North.  No parking will be allowed down this driveway.

Here is where the new parking spaces will be.  They'll be located between the new library and the LDS Semenary building.

And this is a longer view of our drive-through Book Drop area.  The window is not operational yet.  The Book Drops will be operational in a few days.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the building, demolition continues.  Here we see our old staff restroom and break area.

Now, even the supports are gone between the staff area and the old Adult Collections area.  These photos are a bit dark because there is no power in the old section anymore.

This photo gives you a grand sweeping view of the entire Adult Collection area through to where the magazines and audio books used to be.  Much of the brick hallway has now been removed.

This is a view down through the old Children's area to the Young Adult area.  The back office has now been demolished.

This last image shows the old hallway.  The plywood doors you see at the end lead into the new section of the building.

Demolition on the Old Side of the Building

Now that we finally have everything out, the construction crew has begun demolition on the old side of the building.  Here's a few pictures of how the old section looks now.

The crew has spray painted "DEMO" on the walls that are to be taken out.  You see that here on the wall that separated the area where the public Internet computers were from the staff area.

These "DEMO" signs are on the edge of the Director's office, and the wall leading to the processing area.

As the crew seemed to have so much fun writing on the walls, the library staff decided to join in!  This wall is the one behind where the Children's Librarian's desk used to be.

This is the tiny office in the back corner of the old Young Adult area.  This area will eventually be the Library Foundation Book Store.

Sadly, the lovely mural we've had in the Idaho Collection corner is also slated for demolition. It showed the four seasons of Idaho as you looked from left to right. This mural was painted for us by Leslie Twitchell, and we have greatly enjoyed it.  We're sorry to see it go!

Here we see the beginnings of a hole through the wall to the staff processing area.  You can make out our old yellow staff entrance door in the distance.

This is the same hole, only looking to the east.  The window you see in the distance is the one on the east side of the building where the Adult Collection was.

This photo is a bit later on, and now that wall is completely gone!  Just the supports are left.

The wall the librarians wrote on is now gone as well.  There is no trace of the wall and closet that used to be behind the Children's Librarian's Desk.

The next few photos shows how wide open the library is without any walls!

One of the last areas to be demolished is the old Director's office.

Here is one member of the construction crew working in the old staff restroom.  This entire area will be remodeled into the new public restrooms.

And, perhaps this photo needs no comment.