The Seattle Public Library board of trustees has voted to build the new Northgate Library on the Bon Tire Center site at Fifth Avenue Northeast and Northeast 105th Street and the commercial site a block north. The board took the unanimous action at its June 24 meeting.
In addition, the Library will work on a site planning process with the Seattle Parks and Recreation Department, which plans to locate a community center and park adjacent to the library, subject to Seattle City Council approval.
"One advantage of doing these projects together is the contribution it will make to the civic presence in the heart of Northgate," said Linda Larson, Library Board president.
The site is in the retail and commercial core of Northgate and also is close to residential areas and multifamily housing. It has good access to transit and is highly visible.
The board's action came after more than 2½ years of work with residents, other city agencies and the mayor's office to explore potential locations for the 10,000-square-foot branch. The Library has held three community meetings to discuss locations and has taken part in more than a dozen workshops and meetings on siting public projects in Northgate.
The new branch will have a new collection of 40,200 books and materials, reading and homework areas for children and youth, computer work stations and instruction areas and a meeting room. The $5.1 million branch is scheduled to open in 2004.
The new library is part of the $196.4 million "Libraries for All" bond measure that Seattle voters passed in 1998. The plan calls for improving or replacing all 22 branch libraries, building five new branches and building a new central library.
The Seattle Public Library Foundation is in the midst of a "Campaign for Seattle's Public Libraries" with the goal of raising $77.5 million from private sources to enhance the public bond commitment. Every dollar raised will ensure the library system reflects our community's needs in buildings, books, technology and people, long into the future.
For more information about "Libraries for All" or the Foundation, visit the Library's Web site at www.spl.org.
(For more information, call Caroline Young Ullmann, communications assistant, at 206-615-1627.)
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Content modified: 26 June 2002
12/30/2005
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