Fondulac District Library will close for several weeks beginning September 1 to facilitate relocation to its new building currently in the final phases of construction. The last day the library will be open at its current location of 140 East Washington Street will be Saturday, August 31.
All borrowed Fondulac District Library materials will be due before the closing date of August 31 and should be returned by patrons. After August 31, remaining overdue items may be returned to the blue book drop outside the entrance to the library’s current Washington Street location or to any local public library.
Fondulac District Library will waive overdue fees for all of its items returned at the library in August. The fine-free month does not apply to existing or future overdue fines or to fees related to damaged or lost items.
Despite the temporary closure, patrons will continue to have access to library service. Valid Fondulac District Library cards can be used to check out materials at most all local public libraries, including (but not limited to) those in Peoria, Morton, Creve Coeur, Pekin, and Washington. Patrons may visit local libraries to browse and borrow items directly. Alternatively, they may search the catalogs of these libraries and more online, then place a hold and select a local library (other than Fondulac District Library) as the pickup library.
Online library services, such as the RSAcat library catalog and account management, Alliance Digital Media Library eBooks and audiobooks, and Fondulac District Library’s online research resources, will continue to be available via the library’s website at fondulaclibrary.org and will not be affected.
Fondulac District Library cardholders are encouraged to review the expiration date on their library cards and to visit the library before September 1 to renew expired cards and cards expiring in August and September.
Library patrons who place holds or are on a waiting list for materials should change the pickup location to another local library after August 18 and while Fondulac District Library is closed. Holds that retain Fondulac District Library as a pickup library after August 18 will be suspended until the pickup location is changed or the new facility is opened to the public.
At any time, patrons may log in to their library account online and select another local library as the pickup location for existing holds. Before September 1, patrons also may call Fondulac District Library at (309) 699-3917 to request a new pickup location for existing holds. After August 31, patrons may contact other local libraries to request the change.
Later this fall, Fondulac District Library will reopen at its new facility at 400 South Richland Street in the civic plaza in East Peoria’s Levee District. The new library is 32,000 square feet, almost triple the size of the small current facility. It will feature an expanded collection, increased seating, additional computers, social and study spaces, and more convenient service, as well as environmentally-friendly and cost-saving components. The project is funded by a $7 million bond approved by voters in 2009, and construction of the new library building began in June of 2012.
Amy Falasz-Peterson, Director of Fondulac District Library, noted, “We are excited that the library’s small, outmoded space is going to be replaced with an outstanding new facility of which the residents of East Peoria can be proud. Our new space will help us to better provide information and inspiration to all ages. We look forward to welcoming new users, welcoming back past patrons, and meeting the community’s library needs of today, tomorrow, and beyond.”
Additional information about the relocation, its effect on services, and the opening of the new facility will be announced at fondulaclibrary.org as it is available.