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Expansion and Renovation of the
Atwater and Smith Libraries

 

The newly renovated Smith Library in the Northford section is open.
The Atwater Library in North Branford is now closed for renovations and construction has begun! The target date for completion is for Sept. 2010.

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ATWATER LIBRARY ADDITION/RENOVATION PROJECT

The old Atwater Memorial Library is being gutted and completely renovated, and the new addition will increase the building's size from 6,800 square feet to 13,000 square feet. Both the adult and the children's areas will grow, and we will have a community room and seminar room for public use.

The Atwater addition as all on one level, with a ground-level entrance and power doors. The adult and children's departments and the community room will share this new section. To reach the older part of the adult department, people will go up half a flight of stairs; for the older part of the children's department, they will go down a few steps. Patrons may also use the elevator to access these sections. There will be public restrooms on both levels.

To blend in with its historic neighborhood, the library is designed (by Schoenhardt Architecture) to appear from the outside as a group of smaller structures, whose clapboard siding blends with the white clapboard houses all around the building. Between these sections will be glass walls providing light for the interior. The orginal 1943 Atwater building will stand out with its nice brickwork. The driveway and parking spaces will circle all the way around the edge of the property encircling the library, the Reynolds/Beers house, and the barn, creating a great outdoor green space for townspeople to enjoy.

To save on utilities, the library will have geothermal wells for heating and cooling. There will be a number of deep wells drilled on the property. Fluid pumped through pipes in these wells will dissipate heat in the summer and cold in the winter, eliminating the burning of oil and reducing the use of electricity.

As of the date of this writing (September 30, 2009) construction is going very well. Most of the demolition in the old building is done. A number of walls have been removed, and remaining walls and foundations are shored up. Most of the footings and foundation walls for the addition are poured. Pouring of the floor slab will start soon, as will drilling of geothermal wells. Arcadis, Inc., our construction manager, is striving to close up the building before winter sets in, but it is still uncertain if that can be accomplished.

There are no guarantees, but we hope that construction will be complete and our new building ready to open by September, 2010. If you have questions, or would like a general update on the library's expansion, please call the Edward Smith Library (Smith 484-0469) or email Library Director Robert Hull (rvhull76@yahoo.com). We will return your call or email with the information you request.

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On October 26, 2004, the Library Board, Town Council and Town Manager met to discuss our libraries' desperate need for growth. The Council directed the Manager and Board to study the libraries and come up with a specific plan. Board and Manager met over the next several months and produced the Strategic Plan for the North Branford Library System, which analyzed the libraries' strengths, weaknesses and future needs. On June 20, 2005, the Council, Board and Manager met again. The Manager presented details about the need for expansion, and reasons why expanding our two libraries would be he best solution if it could be done. The Town Council approved the Strategic Plan and directed the Town Manager to hire an architect to conduct a facility study and, in the end, plan for a building project.

Why Two Libraries?

There are several reasons why the Town Council, Library Board, Town Manager, and library staff would rather improve North Branford's two libraries, rather than close them and consolidate:

• The best location for a public library is in a town's residential and commercial center, near the people it serves and the stores, churches and other facilities they use. North Branford has two town centers, with two libraries in excellent service locations.
• Construction costs will be less to add on and renovate rather than to build a large new building. In addition, we can get more grant money for renovation than we can for new construction.
• Centralization of library service would not bring substantial savings in our annual budget. We can prove this by examining library budgets across the state.
• The majority of citizens prefer to keep their two libraries where they are. They just want the libraries to be bigger and better.

Do You Have Questions?

If you have questions, or would like a general update on our progress toward library expansion, please call either town library (Atwater 315-6020; Smith 484-0469) or email Library Director Robert Hull (rvhull76@yahoo.com). We will return your call or email with the information you request.