Over 85,000 items have moved from the old Library to the new Diamond Bar Library on the first floor of city hall. It is a beautiful library that will have the ability to provide a series of library programs. The new library offers new computers, free wifi, and comfortable seating throughout. The garden and landscaping promote an open space and the bigger parking spaces will accommodate the busy library, the 8th busiest in the county.
If you think moving to a new house is hard, try moving a public library. Just ask the folks at the Diamond Bar branch of the Los Angeles County Library. “We figure we’ve moved 85,000 items since we closed the old library at the end of June,” library manager Jesse Lanz said.
The new library is located on the first floor of Diamond Bar’s new city hall on Copley Drive. It’s been a bustling place the past three weeks as contractors finish the construction and library workers stack the shelves full of books, DVDs and CDs. “The move actually wasn’t too bad,” Lanz said. “We moved everything section by section. The trick to label everything clearly.” And the Friends of the Library has been working up to the move for 18 years, according to President Rosette Clippinger. “This is a major accomplishment, now we’ll have adequate space for all our library programs,” she said. Clippinger said Diamond Bar had outgrown it old library on Grand Avenue. That 9,900-square-foot facility could now longer handle all the traffic. “We’re a very busy branch. Last fiscal year, we were the eighth busiest in the county with 250,000 visits,” Lanz said. “We faced a lot of challenges in terms of space.” Parking was at a premium at the old facility, with only 35 parking spaces there. Families often had to park at the nearby shopping center for the popular children’s programs put on by the library.
All that will change at 10 a.m. Saturday, when the new library celebrates its grand opening. Diamond Bar readers will find a facility with 18,000 square feet. And 288 parking spaces. “You can’t beat the price, the city is renting the building to the county library for only $1 a year,” Clippinger said.
Earlier in the year, Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe presented the city with a check for $5 million to pay for the construction of the new facility. “The Friends of the Library donated another $80,000 for the new reading garden,” said Sherm Griffone, vice president of the group. The outdoor garden features a fountain, landscaping and comfortable seating. Inside the building, the architectural firm of LPA Inc. has designed spacious reading areas. It has included many unique designs, including a tall replica of the Transamerica building that serves as a book display. The new children’s area takes up one wing of the library. Colorful lamps shaped as floating balloons form a chandelier under a large balloon mural. Other circular cutouts in the ceiling feature a skywriting biplane and a soaring hot air balloon.
Daniel Lopez of Rowland Heights seemed surprised as he delivered more children’s furniture. “Wow, this place is really nice. My 6-year-old son loves books. I’m going to have to bring him here after it opens,” Lopez said. Youngsters will enjoy a storytelling area complete with a rack of hand puppets. And they’ll have six early literacy stations with small computers featuring colorful keyboards to access 50 educational programs. Older children have their own computers across the way.
“The new library has a total of 31 new computers,” Lanz said. “We also have free WiFi access for laptops and other mobile devices.” Teens have their own zone, complete with computers, a video gaming area and a study room. The Friends of the Library will man a spacious bookstore next to the entrance.
source: SGV Tribune
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