New Appleton Library Placed on Indefinite Hold

Appleton library expansion on hold indefinitely. (Appleton Post-Crescent, 7/6/2011)

Excerpt: The move comes at an interesting time for groups counting on city funds to make their building proposals in the downtown come to pass. The city is under pressure next year to do more with less, so there was bound to be a battle for the limited dollars.

Members of the Fox Cities Exhibition Center are on a fast track to build a facility for visitors behind the Radisson Paper Valley Hotel. They met with the Common Council on Wednesday and want a decision in August. The city's contribution is estimated at $3 million.

Also on the table is the renovation of Houdini Plaza. The million-dollar makeover won't happen next year, and it is likely to require private groups to cover 30 percent of costs. But city officials have talked about setting money aside in the budget for the first phase of the facelift, which is the underground work.

[snip]

The Appleton library opened at its present location in 1981. Its circulation that year was 593,000. That number nearly tripled in 2010 to more than 1.5 million, more than any other single-site library in the state.

The transformation to a more digital world is driving the focus of library services, and the library staff would say that means additional space is in order.

To put the crowding into perspective, consider the tight quarters at the library's loading dock, where material sent to other libraries shares space with several large garbage containers.

Related articles:
On the need for a new library.  (2/4/2011)
Director responds to 'frequently observed misconceptions'. (12/4/2009)
Readers weigh in on new library. (11/9/2009)
Mayor provides his perspective on library planning process.  (10/7/2009)
Post-Crescent supports next step in library facilities planning process.  (10/6/2009)
Financing options for Appleton's library project.  (10/6/2009)
Potential sites for new library under discussion.  (10/4/2009)
Membership of capital facilities committee for library project approved.  (8/7/2009)
Terry Dawson's discusses Appleton library building project.  (7/16/2009)
Library building project update.  (6/18/2009)
Appleton's library planning escapes budget cuts.  (11/13/2008)
Post-Crescent endorses library design study.  (11/11/2008)
Study:  New library should be built downtown.  (7/10/2008)