By Chris Basinger, Staff Writer
IRONDALE, Ala.–The City of Irondale broke ground at the future site of the new Irondale Public Library Thursday afternoon, celebrating the city’s latest project that looks to “build community, build the future.”
Irondale City Council members, library staff, friends of the library, building contractors, and community members gathered at the grounds to mark the occasion.
“We’re just excited with all of the activity that’s going on in the city,” Irondale Mayor James D. Stewart, Jr. said.
“When we work on these things for such a long time and nobody can see what’s going on behind the scenes, it brings you great joy that you can have the community to come out and to be able to celebrate the successes that are going on in the city.”
Construction on the new library, located at 1032 Grants Mill Road, is set to begin in a couple of weeks.
When it opens, the 16,000-square-foot library will double the size of the existing facility, providing room for an upgraded collection, technology spaces, and community meeting areas.
Stewart added that the new location will make the library more accessible and hopes that the community will be able to enjoy the new facility for a long time.
“One of my goals when I became the mayor was to leave the city in a better condition than it was before I got here and hopefully, one day, my grandkids will get an opportunity to go to all of these buildings and they will see their granddaddy’s name on there as being an individual that really made a tremendous impact in the city of Irondale while he had an opportunity to be a public servant,” Stewart said.
The new library is expected to open in 12-18 months and has a price tag of approximately $8.55 million.