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Architects to show plans for new library

The Okanagan Regional Library will hold an open house to present the initial plans for the new Summerland branch.

The Okanagan Regional Library will hold an open house to present the initial plans for the new Summerland branch.

The open house will be held Tuesday, June 10 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the existing library branch on Wharton Street.

The new library branch will be constructed at the  corner of Main Street and Henry Avenue, where the former municipal building and a garage are now situated.

Urban Arts Architecture of Vancouver has been awarded the contract to design the new building.

“We know the community can’t wait to walk through the doors of the new library and choosing an architect that can provide a superb quality of work and meet our timelines was very important for us,” said Catherine Lord, chair of the Okanagan Regional Library board.

The architect will work with Tango Project and Construction Management, the project manager for the new building.

Michele Rule, communications manager for the regional library, said the library will take possession of one property in early July and the other in early August. Then, the existing buildings on both properties must be demolished before construction of the new facility can begin.

“With any luck, we’ll start building in September,” she said.

The completion date is scheduled for next spring.

“The community’s excited,” Rule said.

“The librarians are thrilled and the board is totally supportive.”

The Summerland Community Arts Centre, which had occupied the municipal building for the past 16 years, will use the former Willowbrook Lane building on Main Street as an interim location, while the Summerland Potters’ Guild, also in the municipal building, will use a building on Victoria Road North as its interim location.