Palmer Library Update – March 2024
Contributed by Steve Carrington
We are looking to build a new library, but how much of a library does Palmer need? Let’s review how the Palmer Library has grown over the years.
The Palmer Library has grown over the years. Books were collected and stored in the United Protestant Church manse back in the 1930s. Then the collection was moved to the old barber shop in the co-op in 1945. A non-profit, the Palmer Library Association was formed and was recognized by the Territory of Alaska Feb. 11, 1046. This was 5 years before the City of Palmer was incorporated. Community members banded together and converted the old Red Chicken Coop into the Palmer Library in 1951. That was moved to an extension in City Hall in 1967. Then there was the big push from community members to build a new library in the early 1980s. The effort was championed by Palmer resident Verna Euwer and the Palmer Library moved into its current location Januay 1985.
Below is a list of the locations of the Palmer Library with approximate square footage:
- 1930s Tent, United Protestant Church manse
- 1945 Co-op Barber Shop - 144 sf
- 1951 Red Chicken Coop - 600 sf
- 1967 City Hall extension - 1,000 sf
- 1985 Current Library - 12,200 sf
But how big of a library does Palmer need?
Last summer, my wife and I were down in Homer. We made sure to go on a tour of the Homer Library. It made us wonder what newer libraries (those built after our 1984 library) were like. So, we decided to pitstop on the way home to visit and get tours of the libraries in Kenai and Soldotna. Here’s some highlights of some of the things we noticed.
Childrens Area
We asked a lot of questions such as what is your favorite thing in the children’s section? One emphatic answer was a kid’s bathroom in the children’s area. When you think of it, this makes a lot of sense. We also saw a toddler play area built right next to a computer station in a children’s area.
Book Drop
We asked: “What’s the best part of the work area? One library staffer was quite clear that it was their book drop that comes right into the work area. This also makes sense. Palmer has always had a love-hate relationship with our book drop. It’s almost convenient for those dropping off books – except you have to get out your car to drop the books and staff has to trudge outside to retrieve the books. A well-planned book drop would make many people happy.
Public Meeting Room
I have personally checked out our library’s public meeting room many times over the years. Not lately as since 2020 it’s been closed. Some because of Covid and some because of not having enough space. Some years ago, Matanuska Telephone allowed use of their basement meeting rooms for community groups. They have since reallocated those rooms for their own use. I believe having a meeting room available to community groups would be a great part of a new library.
The other factor is the library use of such a meeting room. The library staff was already using the Depot for different events. In browsing library websites online I would often find clarifications that meetings rooms could only be used after library hours. Library staff will easily be using meeting room space for story times, craft adventures and more.
Study Rooms
This was one of the things I noticed right away. The different libraries we visited all had a few study rooms available. Some were for 2-3 people. Some were for 5-6 people. Before you start imagining horror stories --- all these rooms have 2 or 3 glass walls so anyone can see what is happening in the rooms but with a glass sound barrier. Some of the libraries even had online scheduling so people could schedule a room ahead of time.
One thing libraries often do is proctor tests. This is where a college student, high school student or home school student needs to take a test that has a proctor administer the test. This was always a bit challenging to do in our old Palmer Library.
What size are libraries in other communities?
Palmer and Wasilla libraries have been the backbone of library collections in the Mat-Su for years. Our “twin-cities” have consistently served patrons outside our city limits. Consistently these non-resident library users run at 75 to 80 percent.
Why is this? Well, part of it that’s how librarians think. Libraries exist to help people and are designed to be free and available. Another reason is both Wasilla and Palmer have sales tax so people hanging out in our cities participate when they shop. Gary Wolf Architects crunched numbers and came up with a projected size for a new library at 24,000 square feet. That would match Wasilla’s new library, but our Library Group discussed it through and settled on 20,000 square feet instead.
Here is a list of community libraries with the square
Wasilla Library - 24,000 sf 2015 new building
Soldotna Library 21,000 sf 2022 expansion/renovation
Kenai Library 20,000 sf 2011 expansion/renovation
Homer Library 17,500 sf 2005 new building
Ketchikan Library 16,726 sf 2013 new building
Palmer Library-1984 12,000 sf 1984 new building
Cost
So how does Palmer do such a large project. Here’s some history of another large project with the city. We’ve had some issues with our Sewer Plant for years. In fact, from 2009 through 2023 we have spent more than $30 million on it. Of that $20.6 million was paid with grants, $5 million was city money and $4.8 million was for loans. That’s about 15% financed.
The city has received $5 Million from the State towards our library project. We are still exploring other grants and financial options. We will see how these financial options come together before we go out to bid for the project this summer.