LAGUNA BEACH : Refurbished Library to Reopen in June

While the future looks gloomy for the financially beleaguered Orange County library system, readers here can expect their renovated branch to reopen by summertime, a county spokeswoman said Friday.

The local branch--the only public library in the city--closed April 14 so the 22-year-old building in downtown Laguna Beach could be refurbished.

When the $500,000 project is completed, the library will be almost 800 square feet larger, allowing more space for books, computer work stations and a new local history collection donated by the Laguna Beach Historical Society, said Helen Lotos, community relations manager for the Orange County library system.

In addition, the building’s lighting will be improved and a leaky and “energy-inefficient skylight” will be eliminated.

“The building gets so much use, we finally came to the realization we had to do something down there,” said Lotos, who estimates that the spruced up library will reopen by mid- or late June. “People are very happy the rooms are expanding and they are certainly happy about the skylight.”

There has been little good news for the county’s library system of late. Following severe budget cuts last year, a report released by the Orange County Grand Jury this week said some of the system’s 27 branches will likely close next year.

The Laguna Beach branch renovation is funded by Mello-Roos development fees, a system which allows local governments to tax homeowners to pay for roads, schools and other public facilities.

The fees are being generated by development along the Newport Coast, an unincorporated stretch of land between Laguna Beach and Newport Beach.

Laguna Friends of the Library also contributed $50,000 to the restoration, Lotos said.

Except for re-roofing the University Park branch in Irvine, Lotos said the Laguna Beach project is the only county library restoration project underway or anticipated.

“This renovation was planned in advance,” she said. “We’ve really gone down to the bare bones maintaining the libraries that are there, let alone start a new project.”

Until the Laguna Beach branch is complete, local readers can use the Dana Niguel Library on Pacific Coast Highway in Dana Point or the Crown Valley Library on Crown Valley Parkway in Laguna Hills, she said.