South Side Library to Move to the Old Phar Mor...

[Towntalk]

When you consider all of the expences to the library, $50.00 is quite reasonable. Electric, heat, and janitorial. I seriously doubt if you would be able to find anywhere else that you could rent for that price, but then some people aren't happy unless they are getting something for nothing.

If a meeting is booked outside regular hours, then add library personal that must open and close the building and stay there till everone is gone. They don't work for free either.

[yfdgricker]

New South Side library will be 'beacon of light'
Story from the Youngstown Vindicator on 5/17/2007.

The public gave input into the design of the library, which will use almost three times the space of the current one.

YOUNGSTOWN — The new South Library will serve as a "beacon of light" in both function and form, said library officials as they released the project's architectural plans today.

The $4.6-million renovation project at a former Giant Eagle and Phar-Mor store at the corner of Market Street and Midlothian Boulevard will begin this fall.

The building will literally be "taken apart and put back together," said Library Director Carlton Sears, before the new expanded library will emerge in spring 2008.

Sears commended architects for using light in an "exciting way."

"Walls of glass and rooftop monitors allow natural light to permeate the building's exterior," Sears said in a press release.

"When lit up at night, they will create a beacon that can be seen from the distance."

Much more space

The 24,500-square-foot structure will house meeting rooms, computers, expanded adults' and children's sections, an early-literacy area, a teen library and expanded audio/video collections.

It will use almost three times the library space of the current library, he said.

Many of the library's new features were the result of public input from meetings held during the project's planning phase.

"We took the suggestions seriously," Sears said. "Along with adults, we enlisted teens to give their input at a design meeting held specifically for them."

One suggestion prompted library officials to include a special area to house Baby Brilliant pre-literacy skills program, Sears said.

"We are excited about this new area," said Sears. "Studies have shown how important pre-literacy skills are when working with babies from birth to 5 years of age."

The South Library at 1771 Market St., near Eagle Heights Academy, is to remain in operation until the new branch is completed.

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Designers describe two planned facilities
Story from the Youngstown Vindicator on 12/15/2006.

4M also designed the Poland, Austintown and New Middletown branches.

By SEAN BARRON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

AUSTINTOWN — Local libraries in recent years have been built with books, technology, meeting rooms, cafes and many other resources in mind.

Two future branches of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County also will have all of that — plus an added emphasis on energy conservation.

That was a key point in a presentation library officials heard Thursday at the Austintown branch regarding the status of a library to be built on Youngstown's East Side. In a separate presentation, library personnel also received an update on plans to convert a former supermarket on the city's South Side into a library.

Robert Mastriana of the 4M Company of Boardman said the 8,900-square-foot East Side facility, which will be erected on more than six acres near East High Street and Early Road, will rely heavily on natural ventilation and geothermal heat. Windows will be installed with special blinds and three panes of glass, which will reduce heat loss; walls will have insulated concrete forms, which are plastic-foamlike material filled with concrete that are excellent sources of insulation, Mastriana noted.

Light sensors

Also in the mix will be more light sensors to cut down on wasted electricity. Special lights that automatically dim and brighten in proportion to the amount of outside light will be installed, Mastriana noted.

In keeping with that theme, the building will contain a large outdoor atrium and terrace. Other features include a meeting room for 66 to 70 people, a Chapters Cafe, a gabled roof and 69 parking spaces. The acreage allows for additional parking if the need arises, he added.

Even though the meeting room will be part of the library, it also will maintain autonomy by being set up for other functions, and a children's area will be built in a conspicuous area, he continued.

Mastriana said that bids for the work may come next spring. 4M also designed the Poland, Austintown and New Middletown branches.

Supermarket transformation

Turning the 24,000-square-foot former Giant Eagle building at Market Street and Midlothian Boulevard into a library and cafe has undergone several feasibility studies and site plans, and will include public input, explained Ronald Faniro of Ronald Cornell Faniro architects of Youngstown.

"We're going to involve the community in the early stages," he said.

Plans call for adding green space to the parking area to make it look more attractive and to discourage drivers from using the lot as a cut-through, explained Dan Meehan of Cleveland-based Meehan Architects, which is working with Faniro on the design phases of the project. A green buffer zone could be created between the site and a nearby convenience store, he added.

The facility will have a drive-up area to drop off books. Inside, there will be two study rooms as well as areas for children, teenagers and adults, Meehan said. A circulation desk will be near the entrance facing Market, and the library will have two meeting rooms and a literacy room for parents to help their youngsters with literacy and verbal skills.

Faniro touted the location, predicting that people from Youngstown and surrounding areas will be drawn to it.

"This is an important site; it's the gateway into the city," he said.

The project's cost is estimated at $4.6 million, Faniro noted. Floor plans may have to be fine-tuned, then bids could be selected by spring, he predicted.

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From the Youngstown Vindicator on 4/28/2006...

Library board preparing to build East site, renovate South branch

AUSTINTOWN — The Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County board of trustees has begun negotiations with Youngstown architects the 4M Co. and Ronald Cornell Faniro for design services of two new library branches in the city.

Trustees approved the recommendation of its building and sites committee at a special meeting Thursday at Austintown library. They are negotiating with 4M Company of Glenwood Avenue for the design of the East library, and with Ronald Cornell Faniro Architects of East Boardman Street for the South library.

Janet Loew, the library's communications and public relations director, said 4M Company designed Poland, Austintown and Springfield libraries.

Previous library work done by Ronald Cornell Faniro Architects include the computer center and corridor and the children's areas at the main library.

East library is a new construction project at East High Avenue and Early Road. The South branch project is a renovation project, at Midlothian Boulevard and Market Street in the former Giant Eagle building.

The board also agreed to buy property on Hillman Street from Keith D. Boone for $12,800. Carlton Sears, library director, said the property will benefit the library because it is adjacent to the rear of the Market and Midlothian site.

[yfdgricker]

I was looking through the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County and there is a website with more  information about the Southside Branck. The URL is http://www.southbranchlibrary.org/

[yfdgricker]

There is a vinyl sign up on the old PharMor/Sparkles building at Market and Midlothian announcing the future home of your Public Library. It was put up there Friday afternoon.

[Leah]

Judging from the proposed sketch, it looks like the new South side branch will definitely brighten up the neighborhood.

[yfdgricker]

From the Youngstown Vindicator on 4/19/2006...

Library committee puts 2 area firms at top of list for East, South branches

The committee wants workers to display their skills on hometown projects.

By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — Two local firms top the list of preferred architects for the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County's proposed East and South branch libraries.

At a meeting Tuesday at Austintown library, the library's building and sites committee chose 4M Company on Glenwood Avenue for the East branch project and Ronald Cornell Faniro Architects of East Boardman Street for the South branch.

The committee will make the recommendation to the full board of trustees at a meeting at 4 p.m. April 27 at Austintown library.

Some members said local firms should do the work to keep library money in the Mahoning Valley economy and give local workers a chance to display and sharpen their skills on a hometown project.

Poland, Austintown look

Member Millicent Counts said East Side residents want the proposed new library construction in their neighborhood to have the same look and feel inside and out as the Poland and Austintown libraries. She said it would also be nice, however, to have the South branch be something totally different and unique.

Members said the new libraries are meant to last the next 50 or 75 years, so most of them won't be involved in other projects.

Echoing that sentiment, Counts said she wants the new libraries to be "a nice legacy that we leave."

Committee members discussed options of choosing different architects for each project or giving both to one architect.

Carlton Sears, library director, said the projects are large enough for two architects to work independently.

The committee's consensus is to give the projects to two different local firms to provide more opportunities.

The benefits

Members said local firms are in touch with the community and care about what the people want. Local firms also have some idea of the character of the neighborhoods, and the libraries can reflect that character, they said.

Janet Loew, library communications and public relations director, said the board received proposals from 10 architects for design of new libraries on the city's South and East sides. Four were local and six were from outside the Mahoning Valley, she said.

After the board chooses architects, library officials will enter into negotiations with them to achieve contracts, Loew said. There are currently no design concepts or price tags on the projects, she said.

Tom Roepke of Boardman, a retired facilities engineer, is a construction and maintenance consultant to the library and will be the project engineer for both projects. Roepke said he will work closely with the architects and construction managers as plans and then construction progresses, and report progress and any problems to Sears and the trustees.

Modernization

Library officials have said the new libraries will replace current ones to meet shifts in population and the public's use of library branches.

South library is a renovation project and will be at Market Street and Midlothian Boulevard in the former Giant Eagle building. The library will move from its location several blocks north at 1771 Market, near Eagle Heights Academy.

East library's new location will be a new construction project at East High Avenue and Early Road. The East library is now at 6 N. Jackson St.

[Mary Krupa]

I don't see any landscaping in the photo! What's that all about? Typical Youngstown ugliness?

[yfdgricker]

Published in the Youngstown Vindicator on Wednesday, February 1, 2006

2 new libraries planned

Opening some branches and closing others are part of the Library 2011 plan.

By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — Public library and city officials have pledged to work together now and through the years ahead in the creation of a new and improved Youngstown.

Officials of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County held a news conference Tuesday at 3730 Market St., a former Giant Eagle store. The building will be the new location of the South Branch Library, one of two new libraries planned in the city in about two years, said Carlton A. Sears, library director.

Sears said library officials bought six acres in 2005 at the corner of East High Street and Early Road on the city's East Side, land on which a new East Branch Library will be built. Planning for both branches will take place simultaneously.

Mayor Jay Williams reaffirmed the city's commitment to the public library system and its importance to the city. He said the library's plans to invest in new locations in the city limits shows the library is committed to the city's future as well as its own.

Change in zoning

Youngstown's board of zoning appeals unanimously approved zone change requests in December 2005 that paved the way for library officials to buy the former Giant Eagle. William D'Avignon, the city's deputy director of planning, said the zoning changes were required because the Giant Eagle building was not in compliance with city codes on library locations.

Williams said a new library at Market and Midlothian fits well with the Youngstown 2010 plan to develop the city's major corridors.

According to Youngstown 2010 promotional materials, Youngstown 2010 is "sharing a vision for a better tomorrow." Developed through a partnership with city and Youngstown State University officials, it is an initiative aimed at addressing the issues Youngstown faces, developing a vision, then putting vision into action.

Branches should be strategically located to best serve their populations, so opening some branches and closing others is part of the Library 2011 plan, Sears explained.

Library 2011, the library's strategic plan, called for relocation of the South Branch several years from now, but trustees thought it was time to act when property in such a prime location became available, he said.

Giant Eagle reduced the market value of the property at the corner of Market and Midlothian Boulevard by $125,000 as a donation to the library, he said. Library officials recently closed the deal, buying the property for $225,000.

Importance of projects

Sears said the two projects are not just a library effort, but important projects for the city. He said the Market and Midlothian purchase is an opportunity to serve an important area, identified through both Library 2011 research and a study of city branches completed several years ago as a prime site and a gateway to Youngstown.

The current South Branch Library at 1771 Market St., was built in 1929 and remodeled in 1972. The declining population of the area led to a drop in usage at the branch, Sears said. The building has 6,450 square feet usable for library services, and the structure is in need of repair, he said.

As with the South Side location, the current East Branch Library at 6 North Jackson St., is also in a neighborhood with declining population, he said. East Branch has 1,500 square feet of library space. It is in serious need of repair because it has remained largely unchanged since its construction in 1930, Sears said.

tullis@vindy.com

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From the Youngstown Vindicator on 1/31/2006...

Library projects

YOUNGSTOWN — Mayor Jay Williams and Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County officials were expected to officially launch the library's two major construction projects for 2006 this morning. A news conference was planned at 3730 Market St. The former Giant Eagle at the corner of Market and Midlothian Boulevard will be transformed into a new South Branch library. The other project is construction of a new branch library on the city's East Side. Library officials paid $15,000 in 2005 for six acres at the corner of East High Street and Early Road. Giant Eagle took $125,000 off the selling price of the Market Street property as a donation to the library, so library officials were able to buy it for $225,000. Completion of both projects is several years away, officials said.

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From the WYTV Channel 33 Web Site on 1/31/2006...

New Libraries
Mahoning County

An ambitious project for Mahoning County's public library system.

The system is planning two new branches for the city of Youngstown over the next several years.

The spot at Market and Midlothian has been home to a number of grocery stores, and even a part of the Phar Mor chain, but nothing's ever lasted that long.

But now, it's been purchased by the public library.

What is now little more than the shell of an old grocery store is about to change.
"Honestly, this project was slated later, this opportunity became available to us."

Executive director Carlton Sears says the library system recently purchased this site on the southside from the Giant Eagle Chain, planning to convert it into a new southside library, replacing the current branch further up the street, built back in 1929.

"Part of that plan was to create a new South Branch Library down to where the bulk of the people live."

The project joins another set for the corner of East High and Early on the city's eastside.

Both are to be built simultaneously, and opened in about two years.

However, directors say the southside location fits well with the city's 2010 revitalization plans.

"We were asked to hold off on looking at locations for south until they completed that, when the 2010 process was done. They said 'Would you look at that intersection because it's an important node in the city?"

While directors say November's passage of a county library levy makes the new branches possible, they're also aware of the crime problems that plague this part of the southside, as well as the northern end of Boardman.

Dr. David Ritchie with the Library Board of Trustees says, "We had talked with both the police, the trustees, even the trustees in Boardman, the police in Boardman, we are looking into some other things, possibly safety wise."

With the purchase of these two locations now completed, library directors say the next step in this process will be to hire an architect to design the new branches.
Directors say they intend to go out into the nearby communities to ask neighbors what they would like to see as part of their new library.

[yfdgricker]

From the WKBN Channel 27 Web site on 1/6/2006...

Vacant Building Becomes Potential Library

Although it sits idle and empty now, library leaders envision a brand new branch.

The building was once Pharmor, and several times, a grocery store. Thursday night, several people in Boardman gathered for a neighborhood block watch meeting at the township's new police sub station on Market street.

They heard plans of the new branch from the director himself. Most say they'd like a new place children could gather. A brainstorming committee with folks like the ones who attended the meeting will give input on what they'd like to see.

It will be at least two years, before the library will become reality, but officials tell us it could own the building in the next couple weeks.

[yfdgricker]

Per the Youngstown Vindicator on Friday August 12th, the South Side branch of the Youngstown and Mahoning County Public Library will move to the old Phar Mor building at Market and Midlothian. The store was most recently a Sparkle market.

Below is part of the article that was in the paper...

By JOSH ECHT
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — A former Giant Eagle store will become the site of a new South Side library.

The board of trustees of the Public Library of Younstown and Mahoning County will buy the property at Market Street and Midlothian Boulevard from Giant Eagle, 101 Kappa Drive Associates #1, for $225,000.

"The property is valued at $350,000, but the seller stepped up and took $125,000 off the price," Library Director Carlton Sears said Thursday during the meeting of the library board of directors.

The board said the current South Side branch location, at Market and Delason streets, would likely be sold.