Agenda - 11-09-2006-1 Space Needs report

Browse Search

i Orange County Library Long- Range Facility Planning feet would be needed. Orange County should continue to investigate co-location of the branch irr the new Efland- Cheeks Middle School in the short term if public library user service needs and space requirements can be met with that arrangement. Cheeks Township is expected to experience considerable growth over the next 20 years , particularly along 1- 85 in the areas of Efland and Mebane. The area is home to commuters who work as far away as Greensboro in one direction and the Research Triangle Park in the other . The County has targeted this area for economic and industrial development. With the opening of new companies , residential population may exceed projections . The 2001 Library Task Force identified the area as a site for a library branch . 50 % of the population of the Township had Orange County Library cards at that time and there was considerable vocal support for a local branch . The Task Force then recommended that services be provided in a library co -located with the Efland Cheeks Elementary School . This facility turned out not to be conducive to a co -located arrangement . A new Efland Cheeks Middle School is now planned for the area with the possibility that a joint use facility be considered during the design phase . This could provide an opportunity to address the service needs of the township sooner rather than later; however, as with the Carrboro situation, it may provide only an interim solution depending on the planning criteria used. Lessons learned from the co - location experience at McDougle Middle School should bed applied so that public access is not limited . The computer system should ensure that public library patrons are part of the larger public library system and have easy access to all resources in the system _ As with the other facilities described above, the consultant developed a set of basic requirements for this branch using a proposed design population based on 2025 projections and potential functions to be accommodated in the facility. Appendix A itemizes these requirements and functions . Appendix G calculates the proposed size of the facility based on the set of requirements and functions . ❑ That the population growth irr the Cedar Grove Township be monitored and plans be considered to .arcpand the library facility in the Orange County Services Center as indicated. The Cedar Grove Library opened in 2004 in a facility housing other Orange County services . It serves a very rural area of the northern county , The facility is adequate to address current demands however, the population over a 20 -year period is projected to grow to a level that could warrant service expansion during this period , ❑ That rural community erodes be evaluated,for the establishment of cybraries to provide access to more distant library resources; or, alternatively, reestablish bookmobile service with Internet access to county areas not served by an accessible library facility. The 1998 Guidelines for North Carolina Public Libraries recommend that 90% of the service population be no more than a 15 -minute drive from a library and that those who lack regular transportation to a library be served by a bookmobile or other outreach service. The 18