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Library Renovation Updates

In November of 2017, the Library was the recipient of a construction grant from the CT State Library to make some much needed updates to our building.  With matching funds from the City, and much support from our municipal leaders and other City departments, we are poised to get started! The renovations will include an expansion of our Children’s Department to make it more ADA accessible, added space for different age levels with appropriate technology centers, and a more comfortable layout so that families can stay, mingle and meet others - so necessary to building the community relationships we cherish.  The second phase of the project will add two small, public meeting spaces on our adult floor, and require the relocation of the Local History Room.    

The project is scheduled to begin on October 1, and last approximately 6 months.  During construction, the Children’s Department will be relocated to our adult Program Room, easily accessible from the lower level entrance. Also, during this time the Library will decrease the number of programs, speakers and concerts offered; however we will remain open for all other services. Please check our monthly calendar for updated program schedules.  

We are excited for this adventure to start and can’t wait to share our improved space with you once completed.  In the meantime, we hope to see you in the library and will keep you posted on renovation updates.  If you have any questions, please contact Library Director Chris Angeli (203-783-3399) or Children’s Librarian Suzanne Harrison-Thomas (203-783-3290).

Thank you in advance for your patience!

Wednesday, September 18, 5:00pm:  The existing Children's Department will be closed, and will re-open on Tuesday, October 1, in the adult Program Room.  
Tuesday, October 1: Our lower level bookdrop will be closed.  Materials can be  returned in the building, in the outside, upper level book return on New Haven Avenue, or in the temporary book drop bin located outside our lower level entrance. Due to our limited space, we will be enforcing our book donation procedures and ask that you familiarize yourself with the guidelines before bringing materials to the library.   
October - End of renovation: Since the Children's Department is temporarily located in our adult program room, we needed to reduce or move many of our existing programs. Many have been rescheduled to other spaces within the Library, while others will be held at other locations.  Please check our monthly calendar for updated information.   
Thursday, November 7: Storytime returns!  Library staff will be offering Storytime Junior!, a mini-program of cozy stories and songs for ages 5 and under, with a caregiver. The program will be every Thursday at 10:30am in our temporary Children's space.  Come visit!
Friday, November 15:  Demolition has started!  Olympus Construction has started removing  the walls and ceiling in preparation for the Children's Room expansion. They are working hard, but keeping the noise to a minimum, so we have not experienced much disruption.  We are open for all services - so stop by for the latest books and movies, and be sure to check our Calendar for monthly programs!  
December 2019:  The new configuration of the Children's Dept. is taking shape. Walls are down, carpet has been pulled up, and now the ceiling is starting to be removed.  With all the shelving gone the space looks empty!  We posted a behind the scenes video on our facebook page - be sure to take a look!
January 2020: Work continues in the Children's Department. Olympus Construction has started working on the two new family restrooms that will be added. Both will  be single use, gender neutral, with changing tables - large enough for a parent/guardian to assist our younger users if needed! Work has also begun in our former Business Office, which is being reconfigured to be our new Local History Room. The old Local History Room will be divided into two small meeting rooms for public use. We do apologize for any disruption or excessive noise you may experience while in the building. We are excited to bring you these improvements!  
February 2020:  Staff have started to remove materials from the Local History Room in anticipation of construction.  Some books will be stored in the Reference Office for easy retrieval, while the bulk will be in storage.  Staff will still have acess to all material, so please ask if you are looking for something specific.  The Loading Dock is being filled in to make additional floor space in our renovated Children's Room. Some walls are being framed and we can begin to see how it will look when finished.  Again, we apologize for any noise and disruption, and are hoping the project is complete by May!  
September 2020: After some slowdowns due to pandemic issues, we are seeing the end of the tunnel!  Most of the work in the Children's Department is complete, and we are working on adjusting furniture layout to comply with new safety regulations. Our upstairs meeting rooms are 99% complete - but unfortunately will be re-purposed until we receive word that we can hold small meetings.  

December 2020: We are in the home stretch! Renovations are nearly complete in our new Children's space and we can't wait to show you the results! In order to move all the books and materials back into the department we will need to close our temporary space sometime in January. Exact dates will be posted on our website and facebook page as soon as we know them. During this time, a small collection of Children's materials will be available in a designated area upstairs.  Staff will be working hard to set-up the new space, but will still be responding to email (mplchildren@milfordct.gov) during the move.  Stay tuned for re-opening plans!

 

January 2021: Beginning January 4, 2021, some Children's materials will be moved to the adult floor.  We will then close the temporary Children's space on January 11 to allow staff time to move books, media, computers and office equipment into the newly renovated Children's Department. Staff will still be hosting online programs, answering email/phone and pulling holds if materials are accessible.  Plans are being finalized for our re-opening celebration - stay tuned!