With all of the different departments playing musical buildings in the past few months due to the opening of the new building, it shouldn’t come as a big surprise that the library is also going to be going under renovations soon.
It will have to take a step back before its leap into modernity. During the renovations, the library will move to the now-vacant 700 building.
Books and computers will still be available for usage. But cramming the library into the significantly smaller building figures to be a monumental task.
The library will have to downsize some of its current resources. It will also have to find alternate ways of getting the information to the students. But staff members seem determined to provide the same level of service to LPC students.
Warren said it still needs to be determined where to store the books that won’t fit in the 700 building, which previously served as the home of admissions and records and the counseling office. The hope is whatever location will be nearby.
“We think it will work out,” librarian Cheryl Warren said.
Renovations in the library will include updates of the computer systems, the wire for which are buried under the cement (which is why this hasn’t happened earlier).
The layout of the library will also change and the study rooms will get a makeover.
One of the most interesting additions being planned is a smart class. Currently, there is no separate area in the library that can be used to give lessons to students on how to look up information or how to do some work.
The proposed smart class would go where the study area is now. (Don’t worry, the study area would still exist, just in another section of the library. So you won’t lose a quiet place to study or a place to play video games.)
“What we would like is a class where everyone can sit down and,” Warren said. “We can demonstrate how to do stuff and you can actually type on a computer and follow us.”
Another problem the renovation is expecting to fix is the noise. The lobby of the library has tiled floors just inside the sliding doors. The current set up seems to amplify noises. Warren said the plan is to remove the tile, add carpet and push everything forward so there is less empty space at the front of the library.
The reference desk will be moved much closer to the entrance so people can be greeted right away.
There are also plans for a power bar in the front, so students can charge their electronics. More outlets will be added throughout the library, including tables that will allow students to charge their laptops. Also, more wireless routers will be added for an improved Internet connection.
“What we were most interested in was getting a good infrastructure,” Warren said, “so that students could do their work without too much hassle.”
