Larkspur council and library board review programming, collections and Library at the Commons construction update

The Larkspur City Council held a joint meeting with the Library Board on Feb. 19 that covered the board’s recent activities, new library collections and an extended construction update for the Library at the Commons project.

Damon Hill, Larkspur’s library director, and members of the library board outlined programming changes: added teen programming, playaways (audio picture books), Wonder Books (talking picture books), a new video-game collection (sponsored by Friends of the Library), and circulating telescopes. Hill said those smaller, circulating collections and a new newsletter are part of an effort to broaden the library’s services beyond traditional circulation.

The meeting then shifted to a project update for the Library at the Commons. Julian Skinner, the city’s public works director, said construction began after the foundation permit was issued and work mobilized in early January. He reported the project team is working toward substantial completion in March 2026 (design-build contract completion listed as March 11, 2026), with vertical construction expected to become visible within about a month from the meeting date.

Skinner reviewed budget and change-order items the city has tracked since a budget amendment adopted in October. Key figures presented included:

- Grants and donations: a library building grant of over $5 million and site grant of about $1 million; Commons Foundation fundraising nearing $6 million in donations. - Solar and battery: competitive bids reduced the solar budget to about $253,000 and allowed a smaller-than-expected battery solution sited outdoors, saving funds compared with earlier estimates. - Parking and landscaping: shifting the parking lot south to create more green space adjacent to the building required additional redesign work (design fee approximately $61,000) and about $48,000 of construction-related changes; combined design + construction for that change tracked to roughly $100,000. - Contingency/status: the project started with a construction contingency allowance of about $613,000. The team identified about $1.03 million of changes (a finalized change order of $631,000 plus another $405,000 of items pending firm costs). After the earlier budget amendment the staff reported roughly $575,000 of remaining funds and anticipated an additional $250,000 of costs, leaving approximately $325,000 for unanticipated items.

Skinner also showed site photos, a live camera, and a 3-D model tool (Cupix) the construction managers use to compare current site conditions with the building model. He said the team plans quarterly council updates and added that a Commons Foundation donation agreement for about $5 million would be brought forward, with a public presentation planned for March 19.

Council members asked about the habitat garden (baseline included in the bid as an alternate at about $68,000), EV chargers (three additional dual chargers planned; dual means two connectors per pedestal; chargers are not bidirectional now but the site is being plumbed to allow future bidirectional devices), and whether the battery can be expanded in the future (Skinner said the selected outdoor, modular battery can be added to later).

No formal council action on the project update was taken at the joint session; the council’s consent calendar later included items related to the project.