Next up: choosing a site for new $2.9-million library

OLDSMAR -- Officials recently learned how much it will cost to build a new library for Oldsmar and how big it should be to accommodate future growth.

Now they have to decide where to put it.

The city should expect to pay about $2.9-million for an 18,200-square-foot library, according to a preliminary report from Harvard, Jolly, Clees, Toppe Architects. The city hired the firm in August. "We should make a statement with our library," Oldsmar Mayor Jerry Beverland said during a council meeting this month. "I think you can judge a city by its library."

Preliminary plans include a 1,600-square-foot cafe that would seat 28 people and provide coffee, soft drinks and light breakfast and lunch items. The cafe also would "provide power and communications for use as a cyber cafe," according to the report.

The new library also would have a 1,100-square-foot multipurpose meeting room that could seat 75 people, a 2,194-square-foot room for youth services, a children's story room and more than 20 computer work stations.

The next step is for City Council members to decide on the location, which is needed so the firm can apply for a state grant to help pay for the project.

Council members are scheduled to discuss a site at 7 p.m. Wednesday in their chambers at 100 State St. W. The deadline for the state grant application is April.

"It is extremely important that the city choose a library site as soon as possible," the architects' report to the council said.

Council members have discussed building the new library either on the 1.2-acre SouthTrust Bank property on State Street next to City Hall or on St. Petersburg Drive next to the arts center.

At a recent meeting, council members David Tilki and Brian Michaels tried to schedule a workshop to discuss locations before having to make the final decision in January. But the effort failed to get enough support.

"This is a fairly major decision as to where it goes," Tilki said. "I think it will take a lot of discussion. I really think it deserves more time than we would give it in a regular council meeting."

The existing library, at 101 State St. W, is more than 80 years old and was the original home of Oldsmar Bank. Once the new library is built, the current building could be converted to city offices, perhaps with new City Council chambers on the second floor.

-- Staff writer Ed Quioco can be reached at (727) 445-4183 or quioco@sptimes.com.

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