Library services currently offered at the Westside Community Center will soon be expanded with the construction of a new facility on the 2932 IH 35 S. property.

The $5.5 million project is part of the city’s 2019 bond program, and the planned 8,800-square-foot facility will include a program room, study room, teen space, a library collection of up to 20,000 items, computers and a community garden.

“The library team is excited to watch this new building rise up,” said Gretchen Pruett, New Braunfels Public Library director, in a statement. “The groundbreaking for the new library branch on the grounds of the Westside Community Center marks the culmination of the dreams of many of the citizens of New Braunfels.”

Construction is expected to last one year, and the building was designed by Komatsu Architecture with Stoddard Construction Management acting as the contractor.