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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend August 8, 2005 Margaret Jakubcin, a regional library manager, walks through the lobby of the new 16,700-square-foot, two-story structure that will house the Central Point branch library and city offices. Below is the old library on Pine Street. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli It speaks volumes Central Point’s new library opens Sept. 10 in a new building it will share with city offices By BUFFY POLLOCK for the Mail Tribune CENTRAL POINT — Library patrons in this growing town are easy to please. Give them restrooms, a drinking fountain and a place to park — inside and out — and they’re as happy as a bookworm nestled in a classic novel. With closure next week of the county library’s Pine Street location, anxious staff will begin a long-awaited move into bigger, better digs next door to City Hall. One of the last of some 15 county libraries to be remodeled or rebuilt with part of a $39 million bond passed by voters in 2000, the 16,700-square-foot, two-story structure will serve double duty. An intergovernmental agreement resulted in a two-year process to build both a county library branch — downstairs, complete with community meeting rooms — and additional city offices upstairs. Advertisement Between City Hall and the library-city annex, brand spanking new council chambers with elegant light fixtures and high ceilings await the first banging of the mayor’s gavel. Inside, the new library will feature a series of floor-to-ceiling windows, high ceiling lines, ample natural lighting, subdued colors and creative patterns within wood, flooring and marble countertops. A reference desk is situated at the center of it all with separate departments for adults, children and reference as well as enough work space to handle a staff and volunteer corps more than twice the size of the one moving in. Outside, a graceful courtyard complete with a tower clock and additional seating add a final touch while two skywalks and covered skyways provide access between facilities. While the library will not officially open until Sept. 10, west county regional library manager Margaret Jakubcin can already envision rows of tables, space to accommodate more patrons and books for the next two to three decades, and cushy, pint-sized furniture for the youngest of readers. Jakubcin said, while other community libraries focus a great deal on creating exteriors to mirror "community identity," the new Central Point branch was ideal for a growing city with an evolving identity. The commanding structure is tasteful yet conveys that it’s an important building. An added bonus, the inside has a well-kept secret not revealed without a peek inside. "... I think it’s going to be a really pleasant surprise for people," Jakubcin said after a recent tour. "When they see the outside, there’s no way they’ll know what the inside has in store. When you come inside, you can’t help but say, ‘wow!’ " The existing library, which has been the county’s Central Point branch since 1970, is just over a third the space of the new building’s lower half. Staff work space is non-existent. Study space is elbow-to-elbow and the designated ‘public restroom’ requires a walk to nearby Ray’s Market. Library clerk Nancy Smith said the new space would bring changes, both big and small, to delight longtime patrons. "It’s funny, they’re just as excited about the new library as the fact there are going to be two things they want: public restrooms and a water fountain," she said. "Right now, we have neither!" Smith said a hard-hat tour provided to library staff made the move even more difficult to wait for. "There are so many nice things to be happy about. Carpeting — ours is really worn after 30 years, the color scheme is lovely, there’s plenty of shelf space � we’re just excited," said Smith. Another bonus, the new facility is much quieter than the soon-to-close location along the city’s main drag. "Here, we have lots of traffic noise," noted Smith. "When big trucks are rolling by, we have to wait to talk to someone standing at the desk." City Administrator Phil Messina said the city is lucky. "They’ve done a great job," he said this week. Constructed by Todd Construction of Tualatin, the facility was designed by architects Skelton, Straus and Seibert of Medford, who also designed the original City Hall in 1980. Total budget for the project was just over $3.6 million, of which $1.7 million came from voter-approved funds for the library portion. Once the building gets its final inspection, Messina said some moving and shuffling would take place. City offices will move into the new structure. Parks will move from portable structures near Central Point Elementary into ‘old’ City Hall and police will take over former council chambers. Smith said patrons who supported the bond five years ago should pat themselves on the back for such a "beautiful cornerstone for the community." "We have to remind everyone that, as a community, they’re the ones who really paid for this," she said. "Without them we wouldn’t even have it." Buffy Pollock is a free-lance writer living in Medford.E-mail her at [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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