If all goes as planned, the Johnson County Public Library’s new Clark Pleasant branch will open its doors to the public in early 2022.
Library director Lisa Lintner unveiled the proposed design Wednesday at a Community Matters meeting for the 17,200-square-foot branch that is expected to cost about $8.8 million. Funding for the project includes $1.4 million from the library’s savings and $7.4 million from a controversial property tax increase of 2.5 cents for every $100 of assessed value, set to take effect next year.
The new branch will sit on 6.62 acres of land — which the library paid $662,000 for — between Brier Hill Drive and Clearwater Boulevard in Whiteland, about 1.5 miles from the current branch. It is bordered by U.S. 31 to the west and Nightingale Drive to the East. The footprint of the new one-story library branch will not cover the entire 6.62 acres, which includes a retention pond, and will leave room for the library to expand in the future to accommodate the population growth that’s expected in the area, Lintner said.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryThe current branch, a former 10,000-square-foot office space on Tracy Road in New Whiteland, did not provide enough space to fit many of the new features the new Clark Pleasant branch will have. The new branch will become home to the adult learning center, which will move from the library services center in downtown Franklin. The new branch will also include three study rooms, a robotics maker space, a dedicated space for teenagers and an early childhood learning center, Lintner said.
“What’s unique about this space, it has more study rooms than any (Johnson County Public Library) locations — three total,” she said. “The maker space will be a robotics learning lab. We’re just in the beginning phases of planning that. Preschoolers will be doing projects, all the way through retirement age. They’ll be able to engage with robotics. It might even help with career moves to keep people here locally.”
Other added features include a gas fireplace and floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides of the building, she said.
“Natural lighting is really important to a lot of residents here from when we had our public sessions, and it’s what our current space is lacking,” Lintner said.
Natural light, more meeting rooms and dedicated spaces, the fireplace and the increase in natural light were all community suggestions that library officials brought to HBM architects of Cleveland, Ohio, tapped to lead the design side of the project.
HBM was receptive to the ideas, said Sarah Taylor, the library’s assistant director.
“We had a list of things we wanted from (community) conversations, along with another meeting with stakeholders on what they would like as well. The same things are coming up in terms of needs for the community,” Taylor said. “We told (HBM) the things we wanted and they gave us a design that will allow us to get the biggest space we could for the lowest dollar amount.”
Outdoors, the library’s parking lot will have space for 122 vehicles south of the building, a marked increase from about 35 shared parking spaces at the current Clark Pleasant branch. There is also room on the property to add more parking later if needed, Taylor said.
The design leaves room for more parking and a potential building expansion in the future if populations growth warrants it in the next decade or so. It also features an outdoor space that library administrators are considering raising money to create a nature trail or host community programs in, she said.
Next, the library’s board of directors will review and vote on construction bids, though it is unclear when that will happen. Construction will likely start in February or March. Meyer Najem Construction of Fishers will oversee the work, Lintner said.
