Rossville Library prepares for $400,000 renovation
The Rossville Public Library is preparing for a $400,000 renovation to equip it with state-ofthe-art technology, new carpet, new heating/air and LED lighting.
“They’re going to gut the entire building starting from scratch,” said Rossville Mayor Teddy Harris.
The library has been outfitted in the same mauve-and-burgundy interior since it was built in 1987, said Library Manager Carmella Clark. But by the end of this year, its 25,000 annual visitors will see a transformation.
Preparation for change begins Sept.
“We want colors to make it look larger and brighter. We’re going to try to lighten things up.”
9. The library, located at 504 McFarland Ave. in Rossville, will close from Sept. 9-19 while workers transport books and resources about 1.7 miles to the Rossville Athletic Center.
The library will open at its temporary location in the athletic center at 301 Williams St. on Sept. 20.
Library hours and phone number remain the same.
Renovation on the permanent McFarland Avenue building is expected to be complete within six months.
The challenge will be that the library is landlocked and can’t expand its physical space, Clark said.
Contractors can’t build a second floor, nor does the library have the manpower to staff it, so library officials plan to gain space by tearing down walls, she said.
“We’re going to re-purpose the space that’s here now,” Clark said. “Take down all the walls that we can.”
The library also donated books that hadn’t been checked out in six years to free up space. The facility circulates 39,000 books and other media resources.
– CARMELLA CLARK, LIBRARY MANAGER
The renovated library will be decked with powder-gray walls and carpet.
“We want colors to make it look larger and brighter,” Clark said. “We’re going to try to lighten things up. We want colors to make it look larger and brighter.”
More than half of the $250,000 funding for the work came from the governor’s budget, Clark said. The library also has three USDA grants totalling $100,000 that will be used to purchase a new heating, ventilation and air conditioning unit. That money will also fund new LED lighting and a computer STEM lab.