by: Brenda Ordonez
Posted: / Updated:
APPLETON, Wis. (WFRV) – The former Best Buy in Appleton, which is currently being used as a COVID-19 community testing site, is being proposed as a temporary location for the Appleton Public Library during its renovation project.
According to city officials, the library will move its operations to the former Best Buy, located at 2411 S. Kensington Drive, if approved by the Appleton Public Library Board of Trustees at Tuesday’s board meeting.
The move comes as the library’s current building is set to undergo ‘major’ renovations in the coming months prompting officials to find a temporary location to continue providing community members with access to the library collection.
“We are fortunate to have found a site that can provide the space we need, in a convenient location on a bus route,” said Colleen Rortvedt, Library Director. “The temporary library will provide a scaled-down space, prioritizing access to the library collection and technology. We’re also working with our community partners to develop plans for programming in multiple locations throughout the community during construction.”
The city said the former Best Buy location will wrap up COVID-19 testing site on February 25 and then transition into a temporary library in the spring. Officials expect the temporary relocation of the library to last around 18 months.
“The facility is ideal to serve as a temporary library as it can be used with little modifications, said Dean Gazza, Project Manager. “Overall, we were looking for a location that not only could provide good library services, but also to do so economically during construction of the new library.”
Residents can stay up to date on the building project by visiting //www.apl.org/building.
