July 22, 2005                                                                   

Contact: Shirley Melikian Armbruster

559.278.5292 or 559.593.1815

Move of 900,000 library books begins

Movers have begun the task of relocating approximately 900,000 volumes in the Henry Madden Library to an off-campus warehouse to prepare for the $91-million library expansion project at California State University, Fresno.

   The older sections of the library on the north side of the building will be demolished next year and a new structure built in their “footprint.” The four-story south wing of the library, which was built in 1980, will be retained and eventually connected to the new structure.

During the three-year construction process, most services will take place in the south wing, but services may be limited. Entrance to the library beginning Aug. 22 and for the duration of the transition will be the solarium doors, just south of the current entrance.

     The Madden Library contains 1 million volumes. Remaining on campus during the construction will be reference, curriculum/juvenile and special collections.

The library staff is working closely with the project architect, builder and the university’s Plant Operations Division to make the transition as smooth as possible. But, some inconvenience is inevitable.

“We hope that our students, faculty, staff and community borrowers will remain patient during this period,” said Michael Gorman, dean of library services. “The Henry Madden Library has, until now, only been limited in its scope by the outmoded building it occupies. Soon, it will have a building that will allow its excellent service-oriented staff, wonderful collections, advanced technology and a wide variety of programs serving the university and wider community to flower.

“This new library will be the architectural jewel in Fresno State’s crown – a place that celebrates the life of the mind and the pursuit of education and scholarship,” Gorman said.

      New library hours through the transition period will be 7:45 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 7:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays; closed Saturdays; 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays.

The latest updates about the project are posted at www.maddenlibrary.org.

All personnel and collections will be moved out of the north wing, and demolition of that wing will begin next spring, followed by construction of the new building.

Completion of the library is expected in fall 2008. The project architect is A.C. Martin Partners Inc. in association with Hillier Architecture. The construction manager is Swinerton Builders.

The goal is to have everyone and the collection moved by the start of the fall 2005 semester.  The books and periodicals will be moved to a storage facility located in south Fresno in the Orange Avenue-Freeway 99 area. The university is leasing the 80,000-square-foot warehouse.

A new system for checking out general collection books will begin in the fall semester. Library patrons will request materials that are stored off site by fax, online or in person, and the request will be transmitted to the storage facility. Once the items are requested they will be pulled and delivered to the library at set times throughout the day. Patrons will pick up and check out the requested items at the circulation desk, which will be located inside the new main entrance.

The library will offer all current services – but at a reduced capacity – with the exception of the Information Competency Center, which will be out of service during the transition.

When completed, the library will have a total footage of 315,600 square feet for reading rooms and study areas, collections, library administration, individual study carrels, group study rooms, specialized libraries and special collections. The university administration will be housed on the fourth floor of the building.

The new building will include state-of-the-art information technology systems, 3,600 reader stations and a wide variety of study configurations.

The Madden Library is the largest academic library between Sacramento and Los Angeles. The current structure was designed to accommodate 13,000 full time equivalent (FTE) students, but the university now has about 18,000 FTE students (21,000 individuals). The expansion will provide space to serve a campus community of 25,000 FTE students.

The project is financed with funds from the Proposition 55 bond measure approved by California voters in March 2004.

-30-