Palm Springs Public Library discusses process of moving to temporary location
Kendall Flynn
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – The Palm Springs Public library has over 100,000 books, movies, CDs and more. The main public library building is now undergoing a long-awaited redevelopment project, which is moving the library and staff into a smaller space in Rimrock Plaza.
Staff said it’s been a difficult process, but one they know will have a great outcome for the community.
“Out move has been a little bit of chaos but a lot of fun and excitement,” Julie Warren, the library and public services manager said. “Moving out of any place is a bit of a challenge. We’ve been here for 50 year so we had a lot of stuff to move.”
While it may seem like a simple task of breaking down shelves and packing items into boxes, library staff said its a specialized process. The City of Palm Springs has hired a moving company specializing in library moves because each collection needs to be in order.
“The library itself has over 100,000 items. You have to keep the stuff in order even if it’s going into storage,” Warren said. “When we move it back, we don’t want to have a collection out of order.”
The Rimrock Plaza location is 5,000 square feet, which officials said it nearly one-fifth the size of the main library, causing them to have a capsule collection.
Librarians have been working months in advance to prepare the collections to be distributed between three different locations, including storage, offices and the temporary library.
Because of the move, the library has to condense its collection and put a number of items in storage. While workers say they will be putting together their best collection for visiting locals, they have a quick turn around to build a library within Rimrock Plaza before the library opens August 25.
Even with the smaller collection, one library assistant who has been working at the public library for 25 years said she hopes it’s still a special place for all locals.
“I’m almost retired so I really want this to be a dream come true to help in the process, doing the most for the community,” Yrene Navarro said.
Stay with News Channel 3 to hear from officials about the process of organizing and setting up the temporary library.