New Building Project FAQ

• September 2025: ·A Community Steering Committee was established to facilitate community engagement.
• Public Meetings: October 22nd, 2025 at 12pm-2pm and 6pm-8pm (attend one or the other)
  • The Steering Committee and architectural consultants will facilitate two public meetings to present the work that has been accomplished to date.
  • Everyone in the room will contribute input into the values, goals, and priorities for the new library building.
• Public Meetings: November 18th, 2025 at 12pm-2pm and 6pm-8pm (attend one or the other)
  • The Steering Committee and architectural consultants will facilitate two active and engaging design workshops. They will show how your community values, goals, and priorities become physical ideas.
  • The results of this workshop will provide the design team with a basis for conceptualizing the building’s design.
• Public Meeting: Early 2026 (date and time TBD)
  • The Steering Committee and architectural consultants will present a conceptual design of the new library building and solicit feedback from community members.
  • The Library will utilize the materials created for fundraising and outreach.
  • A projected timeline for the project, from start to finish, will be presented.

• The existing library is not meeting the critical needs of community members for smaller meeting spaces to participate in interviews, conduct legal and health telecalls, find isolated spaces for taking exams, and engage in quiet tutoring, among other essential services. We turn away many frustrated community members with these needs that are not met elsewhere in the community.
• The Library lacks people-focused spaces, such as dedicated quiet areas and adequate room for browsing, navigating, and sitting among the stacks. The Library also lacks the requisite space for programming, particularly for larger programs that are standing room only or that we’re constrained to hold off-site.
• Teen and children’s areas are inadequate to prevent noise from reaching other areas of the Library.
• Parking space is lacking, leading to potential accidents and parking on the street.
• Additionally, the Library lacks any outdoor green space suitable for hosting adult and youth programs.

Additional Information:

• The current building was originally constructed as a restaurant that opened in the 1970s.
  • Purchased by the Library and opened in 1983
  • Underwent a major renovation in 1988
  • Expanded and remodeled facility opened in 1995
  • Additional renovation in 2005 to maximize usage of available space.
  • It’s now been 30 years since the last expansion, and we are bursting at the seams.
  • Since 2010, the population of San Juan Island has increased by 22.7%.
• Heavy and constant use since the last renovation in 2005 means that maintenance and repair costs will only continue to rise. These costs come out of the annual operating budget and could negatively affect funds available for services, collections, and staff.
• Aging infrastructure limits our technical capacity to support all user and staff needs.
• We are unable to provide sufficient work stations and outlets in quiet areas for individuals using computers—their own, or the Library’s.
• There is inadequate space for children’s materials and activities, and for teen users.
• There is no space for additional books and other materials.  Offering new materials means that existing materials have to be discarded.
• We cannot meet the demands for meeting room space for public meetings, nor to host all Library programs, many of which have to be held offsite.
• There are no spaces for individuals or small groups to meet for quiet collaboration or privacy.
• The Library is noisy due to the necessary proximity of public service areas to work, study, and reading spaces, and to there being no effective separation between children’s, teen, and adult areas.
• Staff areas are crowded and inadequate to efficiently complete work assignments, process books and other media, and prepare programs for children, teens, and adults.
• Parking is inadequate and often difficult to access safely.

• Of the 103 years of libraries on San Juan Island, 42 have been at the current location, which has expanded twice and is now out of room to do so again.
• Physical materials continue to be the dominant format that people prefer, despite the ease of use of e-materials. Of the 156,280 checkouts in 2024, 73% were physical materials, yet we’ve had no room to grow the collections for years.
• Over 6,000 library visitors on average per month.  At certain times and for specific programs, the space is overwhelmed by the number of people, particularly after school.
• In 2024, 10,578 participants attended 535 library programs, many of which were held off-site because of insufficient indoor and outdoor space at the Library.
• Over 400 children aged 0-11 participated in the Library’s 2025 Summer Reading Program—a record-breaking number—with 69 tweens and teens reading a combined total of 1,574 days.  However, our current building doesn’t provide enough space for these age groups.
• Private meeting spaces are among the most frequently requested services that we are unable to provide.

• An energy efficient, functional, user-friendly building designed to be a 21st century Library
• Minimal need for expensive building repairs and replacements
• The technology infrastructure to support the growing demand for public availability of computer use support services
• The ability to meet the evolving needs of a growing population with both traditional and innovative expanded library and community services
• Well-equipped large and small meeting spaces
• Ample, flexible spaces for children’s, teen’s, and adult materials and activities
• Enough space for seating in quiet areas for reading and study (not now available in the Library or elsewhere in the community, and a need frequently expressed by users)
• Adequate, safely accessible parking
• Outdoor spaces for Library programming and use
• New technologies and services
• Ample staff workspace designed for efficiency and productivity

• An expansion into the parking lot is not an option as parking space is already inadequate.

• Another story would also require more parking by regulation, but parking is at maximum capacity and inadequate as it is.

• Long term costs for maintenance of the current facility will only increase over time, and eventually code related changes will force costly renovations onto a facility that is not sized for the community anymore.
• Costs to renovate the existing facility would, per square foot, be higher than would likely be palatable and would wed the Library to the current building limits

• The new location is closer to the middle of town.
• Students can easily walk from public and private schools.
• The Mullis Senior Center and Village at the Harbor will be close by.
• Being on the main road through town leads to easier access for more people.
• Instead of 2/3 of an acre currently, the Library will have 2 ½ acres with space for activities, extra parking, and room for growth and potential partnerships or subdivisions for affordable housing or other important community services.

• Based on information obtained from professional architects and consultants, the cost to renovate the building and bring it up to code for a modern library would be greater than constructing a new one.
• The building is too large, and at least half would be demolished, even if it were to be used.
• The building layout would require an increase in staffing, raising operational costs significantly.
• It was not built for, nor is it suitable to carry out, the purposes and functions of a library.
• We can remove the existing building and construct a new library specifically designed to meet our community’s current and future needs.

• The Library’s Board of Trustees and the San Juan Community Home Trust are partnering to explore potential affordable housing solutions.
• Partnerships for other types of non-profit and government services will also be considered.
• Any proposal for affordable housing would require an outside organization to provide financing, purchase a subdivided property, and plan, develop, construct, and manage the project.
• Stipulations include:
  • The Library has front, street-side placement.
  • Library requirements for building and outdoor space, parking, and future needs are not constrained.
  • Proposals for affordable housing must address the community’s long-term needs for stable, family-friendly housing for year-round residents.
  • Plans support and do not detract from the Library’s goals for the property.

The regular tax levy funds the Library’s annual budget.  This is an operating budget based on anticipated income primarily from a tax levy collected twice a year by the County. It does not include funding for large capital projects such as construction, site acquisition, etc. necessary for the creation of a new Library facility. By law, the Library’s property tax levy may increase by no more than 1% each year. This would continue to be true in a new facility.