The County Board of Supervisors approved last Wednesday, the initial design for the new library for Downtown Crozet.
In December 2004, the Board adopted the Crozet Master Plan and in it, a new and larger library was approved to give the community a focal point for the redevelopment of Downtown Crozet. Bill Letteri, director of the county’s Office of Facilities Development, said that the design was a “collaborative” effort among the Crozet Library Steering Committee—which included Supervisors Ann Mallek representing White Hall and Sally Thomas representing Samuel Miller—the public and stakeholders. “We listened, we compromised, we balanced,” he told the supervisors.
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The new 18,000-square-foot, two-story Crozet Library will replace the smalle and existing 1,900-square-foot building. |
The design calls for 18,000 square feet of library space with an additional shelf space of around 5,000 square feet, a much larger facility compared to the 1,900-square-foot existing library.
Melanie Hennigan, principal architect with Grimm + Parker, told the Supervisors that the new design is one “that is very specifically tailored to Crozet and its specific situation,” she said. “We are excited. It’s a delightful site and it’s going to be a place where when people visit this library, they are going to want to come back time and again.”
Chairman David Slutzky agreed. “It’s a beautiful building,” he said. “I think your design efforts and the community’s design efforts have resulted in a terrific amenity to Downtown Crozet. This is going to be a successful anchor.”
The two-story building will feature three entrances: the main entrance on Crozet Avenue, one on the new Main Street and one from the parking lot. Most of the activity will occur on the first floor and, as Hennigan explained, 4,700 or 6,000 square feet in the lower level could be prepped for future expansion.
The design features a study room for teenagers and adults, a meeting room that can be used as a children’s reading area, computers, a general reading area and a fireplace.
In keeping with the county’s green trend, the building will have an energy efficient roof and other environmentally friendly features. The north wall of the building will feature large windows that will catch the day’s direct sunlight.
Originally, construction was supposed to begin in the next couple of months, but the Board voted to delay the project until 2011 due to the recession. Yet, both Letteri and Hennigan pointed out that the current bid market is so favorable that the savings could be as high as 20 percent. “If you can save a substantial amount on the bid amount it would enable you to have less debt service over the course of time,” Letteri told C-VILLE.
“There is real value out there right now,” said Hennigan.
The total budget for the project is $9.8 million, with $6 million going to construction only.
Slutzky, however, said that although the savings on the ground floor of the new library could be reallocated to other under funded projects in the county, it would be unrealistic to rethink the construction schedule and go to bid next month.
At the meeting, the Board also gave the green light for the Old Crozet School Arts and the Field School to lease the vacant Old Crozet Elementary School.
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