FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

LEE COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM

Heather O=Connell, Community Relations Coordinator

Phone: (239) 461-2924  Fax: (239) 461-2919 E-mail: hoconnell@lee-gov.com 

 

      Cape Coral- Lee County Public Library Closing, Reopening August 10                                                                     

The Cape Coral -Lee County Public Library will be closed from June 24 through August 9, for the final phase of an expansion project that will more than double the size of the current library to 38,000 square feet! Books, audio and video tapes checked out now from the Cape Coral-Lee County Public Library will not be due back until after our reopening, so take some home today and enjoy them all summer long! 

The Cape Coral- Lee County Public Library is one of the busiest libraries in the Lee County Library System, with an average of one thousand visitors daily. When the library reopens on August 10, patrons will see some major changes and improvements. 

The expanded library will have a separate children=s wing with a fun, nautical theme. Toddlers will be able to select their own books from easy to reach shelving that=s just their size. Older children can set sail on reading adventures in a giant Alife boat@ seating area or enjoy programs and activities in the new story telling room.  

There will also be a separate Young Adult area and an audio/visual room housing the collections of audio books, music CDs, books on CD, videos, and DVDs. Outside, there will be an expanded parking lot and drive up book drops for all materials, including audio tapes, CDs, videos and DVDs. Drivers who are dropping off patrons will be able to pull up to covered walkways, and those waiting for rides can sit on comfortable new benches.  

The ALittle Acorns@, the Cape Coral -Lee County Library friends group, raised more than $81,000 for other enhancements at the expanded library, including a quiet reading area for adults, which features leather chairs and a view of the outdoor reading patio with a  fountain and butterfly garden, also made possible by their generous donation. The Little Acorns also provided funding for an Art Gallery, which will be dedicated early next year. 

The entire expansion project cost a total of $8,653,356 and took more than a year to complete.  The library was only closed to the public for nine weeks during the initial phase.  During this final phase, the library will be closed for seven weeks, while the staff integrates more than forty thousand new books and other materials to the collection.