Library's Midtown Carnegie Branch closes for renovations

The Midtown Carnegie Branch of the Springfield-Greene County Library District has temporarily closed for renovations starting today.

The district announced the scheduled closure in a Facebook post this morning. Officials expect the 397 E. Central St. library to be offline for around 10 months.

The branch, near Drury University and Central High School, is undergoing some $4 million in renovations and upgrades, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting. Crossland Construction Co. Inc. is serving as general contractor for the project designed by Dake Wells Architecture Inc.

Plans call for an addition to provide a new library entrance, designed to offer accessible pathways to each floor of the library, including access to the elevator that will be restored. Additionally, the building’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning system will be replaced and modernized to provide energy-efficient cooling and heating as well as fresh air to improve air quality for the library’s occupants, SBJ previously reported.

Renovations mean all library services, including book returns in the facility parking lot, will be closed temporarily, according to a news release issued by the district last month. Storytime and book discussions are slated to move to The Fairbanks, and the facility's community fridge and computer training center will relocate to the Library Center. Employees of the branch will be relocated districtwide.