Coronavirus outbreak delays opening of St. Charles Library in former Haines Middle School

ST. CHARLES – The COVID-19 outbreak (coronavirus) has pushed back the planned opening of the St. Charles Public Library in the former Haines Middle School.

And with the state's stay-at-home order still in place, St. Charles Public Library Director Edith Craig doesn't know when the library will open. The library had been expected to open in the school in April as work proceeds on a $18.6 million renovation project of its campus at One S. 6th Ave., which is scheduled to be finished in summer 2021.

"With the order still in place, I have no idea when that would be," Craig said.

Work continues on moving the library's collection to the former middle school. The stay-at-home order has affected the work involved with setting up the library in its temporary location.

'We're still two weeks behind on unpacking and getting everything ready," Craig said.

Meanwhile, the expansion project is set to start next week. Sunday's groundbreaking ceremony has been cancelled because of the coronavirus outbreak, but Craig hopes to keep residents up-to-date on the project virtually.

"The construction will carry forward," Craig said. "We want to keep people informed and engaged. Not having an actual groundbreaking was disappointing to a lot of people, but we are doing the best we can and trying to think outside the box. We anticipate to have a camera on site as construction starts. That's still in the works. But that's the goal."

More information will be posted on the library's website, scpld.org.

The library will be housed at the former Haines Middle School at 305 S. 9th St. in St. Charles for approximately 12 to 14 months during the renovation project. During the stay-at-home order, library staff members have been helping patrons online and over the phone.

She noted that even though patrons can't physically go to the library, the library's website has many electronic resources.

"For students who are doing eLearning at home or parents who are working from home, all of our business electronic resources are available and our educational resources as well," Craig said. "We have that available for them."

The library's WiFi network also is still activated and available for use in the library's parking lot. The coronavirus outbreak also has postponed the St. Charles Public Library Foundation's Books and Brunch Fundraiser featuring best-selling author Scott Turow.

That event, which had been scheduled for April 4, has been rescheduled for Oct. 11. More information is on the library's website, scpld.org.