Davis County OKs two-year lease for temporary Bountiful library site during renovation

The Davis County Commission approved a two-year lease with Liberty Hills Academy on Dec. 23 to provide a temporary off-site location for the Bountiful Branch during an extensive renovation.

Library Director Josh told the commission that the Bountiful Branch—one of the county’s busiest—must close for renovation and that the off-site site will be used to maintain services. He described the lease as totaling $239,886 for two years and noted the budget discussion had contemplated roughly $200,000 per year if multiple temporary locations were needed.

“We will need to close that branch to renovate,” Josh said. “The plan ... is to close, open up at least 1 off-site location and then provide as much service from that off-site location as we can to mitigate some of that.”

Deputy Director Ellen Peterson also requested approval of two EBSCO database renewals—Flipster and MyHeritage—totaling $15,472.35 for the 12/01/2025–11/30/2026 contract year; commissioners approved the subscriptions. Commissioners and staff noted additional costs tied to the temporary site, including internet service and small site prep work, and said facilities and community development staff had helped identify locations.

Commissioners said the Bountiful project followed months of feasibility work and city coordination and that the chosen approach—renovating the existing building rather than building new—was informed by the architect’s assessment and previous work sessions. The commission approved the lease and associated library items by voice vote.

What’s next: Staff will coordinate site preparations, arrange internet connectivity, and communicate temporary-location hours to the public; no capital appropriation beyond the approved lease was recorded at the meeting.