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Nolan Baker
Whatcom County Library System (WCLS) has entered into a contractual agreement with Osborn Architects Inc. to begin the construction design process for the new Birch Bay Vogt Library Express, marking a major milestone for the Birch Bay permanent library.
WCLS Deputy Director Michael Cox said the contract, signed in early April, represents progress in a years-long process to create stronger library services for Whatcom County’s fourth-largest community.
Cox said WCLS plans to hold community meetings this spring on upcoming construction and design plans and will release more information in the coming weeks. Representatives from Osborne Architects will present early models of the library’s interior to the public at the conference.
The library is expected to open in 2025, Cox said.
“We realized that the population, particularly the rate of population growth in that part of the county, coupled with the usage, justified the need,” he said. “They’re using Blaine, Lynden, Ferndale libraries and we’ve found that this group of people are very strong library users.”
According to past reports, WCLS originally planned to turn the entire 7,600-square-foot Vogt family homestead into a full-service library, which would cost $6.5 million. Northern Lights. The plan called for the creation of a taxing district to raise $4 million for the project, but voters rejected the plan twice during the November 2021 and February 2022 elections. The February vote fell just 26 votes short of the 60% absolute majority required.
Currently, Birch Bay is served only by WCLS’s “bookmobile,” a truck/library hybrid that parks on Vogt’s lawn for a few hours each week.
“We were really close and we had most of the support from the community, but we didn’t get what we needed,” Cox said. “We don’t want this to stop us from moving forward… We really believe that the library we are building will be able to provide a high standard of library services.”
The WCLS Board of Trustees proposed a new plan to create 1,700 square feet for the library, which was submitted and accepted by the state Legislature in April 2023, resulting in a $2 million grant for the library.
WCLS raised $315,000 in funding from Whatcom County through the American Rescue Plan Act and lobbied the state Legislature to allocate $2 million for a future library express line, but Cox said before renovations can begin , construction costs are likely to continue to rise.
“Inflation is quite high and these numbers can fluctuate based on changes in the cost of building materials,” Cox said. “We’re still really in fundraising mode because we expect the cost estimates to increase.”
For more information about the Birch Bay Vogt Library Express, visit bit.ly/4aPT7t2.
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