Lindsay checks in new library
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Updated: Thursday, November 6, 2008 4:43 PM PST |
The Lindsay City Council and the Tulare County Board of Supervisors have announced they will formally dedicate the new Lindsay Branch Library at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, November 21, and invite the public to attend a grand opening reception and tour the new facility.
ěThis is a fantastic building -- itís so much bigger and inviting,î said Lindsay Mayor Ed Murray, who added that the new structure is a symbol of the kind of innovation that is possible when public agencies collaborate on big projects. Those sentiments were echoed by Connie Conway, Chairman of the Tulare County Board of Supervisors.
ěLibraries are the new community centers of learning,î Conway said. ěWe are proud to partner with the City of Lindsay on this great project.î
Mayor Murray said the Lindsay City Council has a long history of partnering with other agencies to offer increased services, noting that more than once they have done so with school officials. Supervisor Allen Ishida said city officials showed a lot of foresight by taking it upon themselves to construct a new building and then lease it to the County.
ěThis also elevates our library services in this area into the 21rst Century, and gets us into the kind of facility library patrons deserve,î Ishida said.
Lindsay Vice Mayor Pam Kimball said the new Lindsay Branch Library is at least three times bigger than the old existing library building, which dates back to 1934. Officials wanted the new building to be inviting and incorporate new technologies such as wireless access and computer connectivity to electronic card catalogs and research databases. In addition, the new facility will allow library patrons and the public to gather and network through meetings and in groups.
ěThe new Lindsay Branch Library will encourage lifelong learning and community empowerment,î Vice Mayor Kimball said.
Lindsay Library History
A free reading room was established in Lindsay in Dec. 1909. The reading room was open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Edward Treutlein served as the first librarian. The room rented for $10 and was financed by ěentertainments, dues and subscriptions.î A Tulare County Library deposit station (a place where patrons could pick up and deposit County library books) was placed in the reading room in July, 1910. The Lindsay Branch Library was established as the third branch Library in the Tulare County Library system on Sept. 16, 1910.
The Lindsay Branch Library moved to the Owl Stationary Store on Honolulu Street in 1911. It moved again in 1912 to the Toothaker-Seegmiller Building. The Lindsay Branch Library found a more permanent home in 1913 when a room was added to the Womenís Club Building, which was also called ěthe Arboretumî and still stands at the corner of Hermosa and Mirage.
The Lindsay Branch Library began offering a weekly story hour in 1926. Library usage continued to increase, and in 1933 the City of Lindsay and Tulare County applied for a new library building to be built as a Civil Works Administration or CWA project, an effort that was also sponsored by the Lindsay School District. The school district provided funds, the city donated the land and the CWA contributed labor and material. The present Lindsay Branch Library building was built for $10,000 and dedicated on September 18, 1934.
The City of Lindsay and the County of Tulare began actively planning for a newer, larger Lindsay Branch Library building in fall 2004. The City of Lindsay purchased an old, dilapidated laundry located at 157 N. Mirage Ave. in 2005, and moved forward with demolition of the building. Shortly afterwards, the Lindsay City Council contracted with E. B. M. Design Group, Inc. of Visalia and architect Eric B. McConnaughey drew up a concept for a 6,733 square foot energy efficient structure that is innovative in both its use of space and natural lighting.
The City of Lindsay contracted with itself to build the new $1.15 million Lindsay Branch Library. The County has agreed to lease the new building for 25 years. Actual construction took approximately one year to complete, with the last tasks expected to be finished before the Library dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony, scheduled to occur at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, November 21, 2008.
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