Georgetown officials consider short-term library upgrades, 10-15-year renovation time frame

In January, City Council members expressed concerns with the anticipated $109 million GPL expansion and renovation cost, as city staff navigate ongoing road projects, parks and recreation improvements and nearby downtown construction.

“We still think that expansion is going to be required at some point,” Moss said April 22. “In the interim ... there are a lot of things that you all can do within the existing footprint that doesn't require an expansion, but that would allow you to change the effectiveness and the functionality of your existing building.”

Moss said a refresh could mean adding new furniture or finishes to the GPL.

The discussion

Council member Amanda Parr asked if the GPL renovation would deconstruct projects planned in the GPL refresh.

Items like new furniture could be saved in the renovation, while new carpeting or paint applied in the refresh might need to be replaced again, Moss said.

“Paint and carpet is probably less expensive than walls,” Parr said. “If we can repurpose some ... and get us to where we need to be—or to a better place today—and then work towards something for the future, that would be great.”

Taking a step back

At a March 25 City Council workshop, Mayor Josh Schroeder asked if the city’s public improvement district policy could be changed to include a requirement for a development to have a public facilities dedication instead of a parkland dedication.

“That dedication could potentially come in as just a public land dedication,” Schroeder said. “We can then decide, ... ‘Well, maybe we want to use this as a library facility versus a parks facility.’”

Two weeks later, Anaiah Johnson, PulteGroup land planning and entitlement manager, presented a proposal to council for a 362-acre Atkinson Ranch development in north Georgetown.

Johnson said his team is discussing the possibility of including a micro library in the development with city staff.

“As more developers learn that there is such a great need for additional library services—whether it's hold lockers, whether it's micro branches—I think the city will find there's a lot of interest in that,” Moss said.

Cost to the city

Cost estimates for a downtown expansion, new library branches, microbranches and holds lockers have not changed since January, according to city documents.

What’s next?

The library long-range plan steering committee will vote on the new master plan May 6, and council members are set to approve a final adoption by the end of May, Moss said.