Jerseyville Public Library Renovation and Addition

This 4,000 SF Carnegie Library was built in 1904 and was expanded by 5,400 SF in 1986. Farnsworth Group was hired to design a 12,600 SF addition to better serve the needs of the community.

The original Carnegie building remained intact with minimal renovations to the lower level offices, while the 1986 addition underwent significant changes to provide better traffic flow, larger collection storage, and correct aesthetic deficiencies of the prior addition. Other improvements to that addition include a new Discovery Area, staff offices, and Friends of the Library book sale room. The second floor was expanded to provide a larger fiction area.

The new addition includes a new two-story entry area, circulation desk, computer lab, large community meeting rooms with catering kitchen, individual study spaces, teen gaming and e-sports space, and improvements to increase accessibility including public restrooms, elevator, lift, and collection shelving.

The site was significantly improved to accommodate the building addition, adding new on-site parking spaces and better circulation for pedestrians and vehicles, as well as additional adjacent street parking and upgraded lighting. This project was awarded a 2020 Public Library Construction Act Grant and a USDA Grant for Rural Libraries.