Midland library outlines front‑landscape, safety and interior reconfiguration plans; temporary closures expected

Library staff told the Grace A. Dal Memorial Library Board on May 21 that the library will undertake a combined exterior and interior construction project this year that will add a drive‑through book drop, replace concrete planters with visible safety bollards and planted barricades, change parking and traffic flow, and reorganize several interior rooms to make space for the mid lab and to secure archival materials.

The project "encompasses a couple of different parts," the presenter said, and staff have planned the drive‑through book drop "just along the curve of the library" so cars entering the lot will pass the main building first and then may pull into a designated book‑drop lane. Staff said the lane will be wide enough for two vehicles but will be arranged so transportation providers can block both lanes if a rider needs a lift or extra room to exit a vehicle.

Library staff said the exterior scope includes replacing six low concrete planters with lit bollards and 13 barricades disguised as benches along the building facade to deter vehicles from driving onto the sidewalk. The presenter said the planters will be moved closer to the parking lot so there will be roughly 36 inches from the parking spaces to the edge of planting beds; the change is intended to direct foot traffic to the building side and reduce pedestrian exposure to vehicles.

Inside the building, staff described a series of room reassignments intended to expand the mid lab maker space and protect historical materials. The plan would relocate the mid lab from its current tucked position in the children’s area to the Orchard Room retail market area; the retail market (run by the Friends of the Library) would move to the quiet room. Staff said they will install a dividing wall and new doors to allow the mid lab carpeted area to function as a classroom while keeping an adjacent hard‑surface area for programs. The genealogy collection and archived copies of the Midland Daily News will be moved from the basement to a lockable, non‑windowed second‑floor stack room; staff said the materials will be accessible by reservation or retrieval through the reference desk.

Staff said the changes are intended both to improve patron safety and to make operations more efficient. "It will be a lot more controlled and more secure way of running the library," the presenter said, describing a plan to reopen an original 1955 staff circulation path so deliveries and contractors are greeted and routed by staff rather than entering directly into public spaces.

Timing and funding: staff said the exterior and interior work is being coordinated so disruption happens once; they are targeting a temporary closure in September to remove sidewalk sections and sprinkler lines and to pour concrete, with construction estimated at 4–8 weeks. The presenter said the goal is to be open for the Friends of the Library book sale (the weekend in October that the Friends hold their sale). Funding for the project will come from library cooperative funds that the library has accumulated and that are returned to the library for capital projects; staff said those funds have been held by the cooperative since about 2018 and are distinct from general taxpayer dollars.

Parking and related construction: staff also updated the board on adjacent Dow Gardens parking work. They said the West end of the library’s parking lot should be available around the weekend of June 1; Dow Gardens’ larger parking construction will continue through November 2026. Staff said utility relocation (phone lines, sprinkler lines and storm drainage) required deeper excavation on one end of the site.

Board members asked questions about plant selection, picnic table placement and access during construction. Staff said they had canceled an original plan to use tall plastic root‑guidance tubes after learning each tube would cost about $10,000 and 13 would have been required; staff said they will seek lower‑impact planting options and may install seasonal plantings initially.

No formal board vote on the construction plan was recorded in the meeting minutes; the discussion was presented as staff recommendations and implementation planning. The meeting did record routine procedural actions earlier and later in the agenda (acceptance of the March 19 minutes and a motion to adjourn).