Take a sneak peek: Expanded Turlock Library set to open with these new features
The public can check out the expanded Turlock Library, including a new community room and enclosed courtyards, when it opens Tuesday.
With 60% more space after about a year of construction, the library on 550 Minaret Ave. features larger children and teen areas, a quiet reading room and a maker space equipped with a 3D-printer and sewing machines.
The renovation reconfigured the layout but kept the building’s cross-shaped structure and added about 6,000 square feet, said Bryan Sontag, operations manager for Stanislaus County libraries. The first difference visitors may notice is the removal of the second entrance on Minaret Avenue, Sontag said. New areas include the community room, two courtyards and the children’s library, the last of which used to be where a reading room is now.
Programs for both adults and children can happen in the community room, which connects to one of the courtyards. The library plans to rent out the room and offer after-hours programs, Sontag added.
The teen collection is also about double the size, Sontag said. The maker space for arts and crafts is only the second of its kind in the county library system, he added. The Modesto branch has the other maker space.
Stanislaus County completed the $12.7 million renovation project under budget, Board of Supervisors Chairman Vito Chiesa said in a press release. Staff anticipate $1 million in savings, per a June staff report when the board approved completion of the project. About half of the funding came from the tobacco endowment fund, while the rest is from library funds, public facilities fees and the general fund.
“The Turlock community has waited a long time for this to happen and the Friends of the Turlock Library and their donors should be commended for their generosity making the new library even more awesome!” Chiesa said in the release. “This is a great example of working together, with a shared purpose resulting in a new modern library and community center we can all enjoy for generations to come.”
Community members have advocated for renovations of the 53-year-old building since 2016 and the library has been closed since March 2020 for construction.
The Friends raised $1.4 million in donation pledges over a 10-year period to fund augmentations and long-term support of the library, said Pat Portwood, president of the nonprofit organization. So far, the Friends have spent $300,000 on furniture, technological upgrades and architectural enhancements, Portwood said. Future funds may go toward buying more art supplies for the maker space.
Donations paid for all new book shelving throughout the library, chairs and tables, display screens, the maker space and tablets among other augmentations, Portwood said. The Friends’ bookstore within the library is about three times larger, too. A community wall and the names of rooms recognize donors.
“We are just so thankful and it’s just been a remarkable journey,” Portwood said. “It’s state-of-the-art there. I think it’s going to be the kind of place people walk in and go, ‘wow.’”
The library will be open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday; noon to 8 p.m. Wednesday; and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.
This story was originally published August 9, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
