Library Renovations Update 12/13: Latest Updates and Presentation from City Staff

Library and Community Center Renovations

Update: December 13, 2024

On December 11, 2024, City Staff presented a Library Construction Update to the Takoma Park City Council. This presentation included updates on:

• Work completed between September and December 2024
• The latest on the trees that were removed from the site
• Current Funding Sources and project costs
• An update on the short-term and long-term project timeline

View the full Council presentation here. 

Update: November 27, 2024

Renovations within the Community Center related to the Library construction have started in earnest. Please pardon our dust during the rework of our building.

Meanwhile, Maple Avenue sidewalk work is on track for completion soon, fully reopening the Maple and Philadelphia pedestrian crosswalks. More details on the completion of this work will be provided here once available.

Recreation Impact Reminder

• The Game room and Dance studio are closed to the public and will remain closed during the Library/Community Center renovations.
• Recreation Administrative offices are now located at the temporary Library at 7505 New Hampshire Avenue, Suite 205.
• The Teen Lounge will remain open, and teens can enter and exit the space using the outside entrance near the basketball courts.
• Before and Aftercare programs will remain as scheduled in the Azalea room.
• Please call the Recreation Department at 301-891-7290 for additional information regarding programs and services.

Update: October 17, 2024

Maple Avenue Trench work for the new library site (Community Center-7500 Maple Ave) continues.

Community Center Parking Impacts: 

• Parking in the lot in front of the Police Department will be severely restricted along the retaining wall for the duration of the work. Parking restrictions in the front parking lot will migrate as work progresses.
• The contractor will place signage to block off impacted parking spaces.
• Please be advised that the parking lot at Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES) is reserved exclusively for the school's teachers and staff. Please do not park in this lot to ensure adequate parking is available for the school's personnel.

Barring any unforeseen delays, work is expected to take approximately one month to complete. We will keep you posted on any updates or changes.

Update: September 26, 2024

Due to the Library and Community Center Renovations, the Recreation Department will undergo the following changes beginning Thursday, September 26.

Update: August 15, 2024

Library and Community Center construction will have the following impacts when MCPS teachers return on Monday, August 19, and kids return back to school on Monday, August 26, 2024:

1. Rear parking lot and Grant Avenue:
   • Exercise caution when using the walking pathway from Grant Avenue, approaching the Community Center (7500 Maple Ave), back parking lot, and Piney Branch Elementary School.
   • Work is expected to be resolved in the next month.
2. Front of Community Center: 
   • Due to the sidewalk closure along Maple Avenue in front of the Community Center, pedestrians walking to school should stay on the opposite side of Maple Avenue until they reach the Crosswalk at the Grant Avenue intersection.
   • Work is expected to be resolved over the next few months.
3.  Recreation Programming at the Community Center:
   • The Recreation Department will move in mid-September to make way for interior building renovations.
   • Interior work will close the Game Room, Dance Studio, and adjacent bathrooms on September 16.
   • Bathrooms on the third floor of the Community Center will be available to the public.
   • The Teen Lounge will remain open but must be accessed from the rear parking lot through the side exterior door.

As a reminder: 

Community Center Back Parking Lot-Parking Impact:

• Please note: On Wednesday, August 14, a new stop sign was installed at the intersection of Maple Avenue and Grant Avenue. This should help slow down the heavy traffic in that area.
• On weekdays, from 7 am to 5 pm, short-term (30-minute) parking is available for patrons in the Community Center Back Parking Lot. The parking spaces are located on the left-hand side.
• The travel lane will be open to traffic from Philadelphia Avenue to Grant Avenue.
  

Philadelphia Ave to Grant Ave - Pedestrians Impact:

• The pedestrian path will be relocated to its original position on the south side of the parking lot.
• Pedestrians using the path from Philadelphia Ave to Grant Ave will be directed away from the utility work towards the Community Center sidewalk, where they can cross at the designated crosswalk onto Grant Ave.

Update: July 3, 2024

Work on the water utility connection for the new library site (Community Center-7500 Maple Ave) will begin on Monday, July 8, 2024.

Barring any unforeseen weather delays, work is expected to take approximately two weeks to complete.

Check out the below diagram of the utility work impacts:

Update: June 5, 2024

We are currently using the following construction timetable:

Summer 2024:

• Utility work
• Installation of roof and clerestory
• Completion of exterior framing
• Laying the brick veneer
• Beginning of interior framing

August/September 2024:
Recreation will finish relocating to complete work on Recreation staff offices and public restrooms. This will occur after the conclusion of Summer Camps.

Most Recreation staff have already relocated to New Hampshire Avenue facilities, which is not expected to cause service interruptions. All efforts will be made to mitigate any disruption to Recreation and other City services.

Update: April 4, 2024

• The Building Contractor has expressed their desire to work the next few Saturdays to make up time incurred due to weather delays.
• The work should not affect the normal operations of the Community Center.
• There is the potential for construction-related traffic and noise, but these will be limited and isolated events.

Update: March 14, 2024

• Library Renovation Update: Construction will now move to the front of the Community Center and the Pedestrian Bridge.
• What are the impacts:
• Fencing will go up as early as March 14, 2024, for the next few weeks.
• The fencing will start at the corner of Philadelphia Avenue and continue around Maple Avenue all the way to the start of Grant Avenue (but it won't impact Grant Avenue at all).
• Directional signage will direct the street crossings at Philadelphia and Maple Avenue, and the street crossing will be at Grant Avenue.
• There will be no street access from the Pedestrian Bridge to Maple Avenue.
• Short-term parking will not be available in front of the Community Center.
• Accessible door access and parking spots are located on Grant Avenue, lower level Police Lobby, and at the back parking lot of the Community Center.

Update: February 23, 2024

• Recently, due to Library Renovation construction, the Martin Luther King Jr. Stone was relocated from the Community Center to Heffner Park:
• The Heffner Park Community Center results from decades of advocacy led by black community leaders like Lee Jordan to demand recreational outlets for Black children prior to the county’s public accommodation law (1963) prohibiting discrimination in public facilities.
• Read more about Heffner Park's historical significance.

Update: January 23, 2024

• We continue to work around the winter weather
• Foundation and utility work is still ongoing
• The trees have been transported off-site for processing and storage
• We found a boulder, named it Chip, and then defeated it

Update: December 21, 2023

• Work will continue throughout this period as much as the weather allows, and we'll be back with another update once some of the work in the 12/5 update is completed.

Update: December 5, 2023
The next significant step for the job site is preparing the foundation. There will be digging to tie the new structure to the existing structure. By mid-January, we should have a new foundation and slab to build a library upon.

• All construction is weather permitting and subject to unscheduled changes with the contractor.
• What is the plan for the trees? (already posted)
• We are working with Treincarnation to appraise, process, and reuse the trees.
  • To be clear and transparent, there is no way to predetermine if the trees are salvageable.
  • Treincarnation cannot guarantee they will be able to use any of the wood from the removal. 
  • They are experts in salvaging material of this nature and skilled artisans who can create beautiful and enduring furniture.
  • The hope is they will be able to salvage the wood to create furniture to enjoy for years to come in the new facilities.

Update: November 17, 2023

• The trees are expected to be removed in the week of November 20, 2023. We wanted to share and remind everyone of the plan.Summary:
  The Library and Community Center Redevelopment Project will result in new, sustainable facilities for all Takoma Park residents to enjoy. This ambitious LEED Gold project is situated on a site definitively bound by its surrounding structures and infrastructure.
  • These spatial limitations have necessitated the difficult decision to remove trees from the site before the facilities can be expanded and renovated. These trees include a spruce and three willow oaks. One of the oaks was planted in memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., further underscoring the imperative to approach this task with great care and respect.
  • Guided by the City’s sustainability values, resourcefulness has been emphasized at every opportunity throughout this design and construction process. This same care and concern has been applied to every facet of the Library and Community Center Redevelopment Project, including—and most significantly— some trees that will need to be cleared from the building site.
  • From the initial difficult decision to remove these trees to the question of how they can be repurposed, many experts have weighed in to bring us to where we are today. To that end, we have prepared some information about what factors were factored into the plan.
  • To be clear and transparent, there is no way to predetermine if the trees are salvageable.
  • Treincarnation cannot guarantee they will be able to use any of the wood from the removal. 
  • They are experts in salvaging material of this nature and skilled artisans who can create beautiful and enduring furniture.
  • The hope is they will be able to salvage the wood to create furniture to enjoy for years to come in the new facilities.

Update: November 16, 2023

• Note that the construction (hammer) noise is expected to ramp up in the coming days.
• The contractor expects to remove the old parking access stairs late this week and early next week. It has a different connection to the rest of the Community Center structure so it may be less noticeable.
• Now that the library slab is separated from the Community Center slab, there should be less transmitted noise. As the remainder of those foundations are removed, it will likely be less perceptible.
• The Library construction project is now building momentum on the site.
• The contractor intends to begin controlled demolition of the building in the week of October 16th.
• You can expect more truck traffic on or around Philadelphia Avenue accessing or leaving the site.
• It is likely the greatest impacts will be from noise and dust. The contractor will use accepted sound monitoring to maintain safe levels and dust abatement.
• The contractor has already completed the hazardous material abatement.
• Additional crews will be working on the site to continue separating the existing building from the portions to be demolished.
• You may see their equipment or work in the rear parking lot.
• One notable change is the Trees trunk harvest work will be done after the building comes down. This was a special request to allow additional space to work for the tree crew.
• The next significant milestone will be the roof deconstruction in preparation for separating the existing framing from the building.
• We also anticipate that a Washington Gas contractor will be onsite in the back parking lot of the Community Center to relocate the community center utility service—the week of October 16th.
• Please be patient -check our website for alerts and updates. Visit takomaparkmd.gov often, as we will continue to provide updates on the project.
• Questions, Concerns, Comments - please email us at  newlibrary@takomaparkmd.gov we are monitoring this email.
• The good news is that City Services will not be interrupted during construction or demolition. If the back parking lot is closed for a few hours or all day, you can access the Community Center through:
• Maple Avenue entrance,
• Grant Avenue entrance,
• or the Police Department lobby