The Silver Spring Branch Library on Colesville Road will close next month as it prepares to transition to its new space currently under construction a few blocks away at the corner of Wayne Avenue and Fenton Street.
As part of the moving process, library staff will inventory the books, pack up items and go through old files.
“Imagine living in a house for 57 years and having to pack up everything,” Carol Legarreta, a county library spokeswoman, said. “That’s what they’re going to do.
Staff will also be preparing the building, which is owned by the county, for its next tenant, though there is no new tenant lined up yet, according to Legarreta. Possible uses for the building include combining it with the nearby Ellsworth Urban Park and making the parking lot into a park or turning it into an intergenerational recreation center, according to a Montgomery Gazette report.
The new library is expected to open later this spring, but Legarreta said there’s no firm opening date yet. She said the Department of General Services will inform library officials when construction is completed and that’s when the move-in process can begin.
“Once we get into the building, we can assess the amount of work that needs to be done,” Legarreta said.
The Silver Spring Library under construction, plus a rendering of the design (right)
The new $69.5 million library will measure an estimated 63,000 square feet. It will contain small study rooms, a children’s room, computer labs and even a café. The building features a glass-heavy, curving exterior and seven floors. There will be space in the building for county offices, public meeting rooms and a potential art center. The art center, which was slated for the first two floors of the building, hit a snag in December when negotiations with Pyramid Atlantic Art Center fell through. The county is now looking for other potential tenants to occupy the space.
Legarreta said users of the current library—many of whom may have books out—should check the library’s website closer to closure to determine what they should do with them while the branch is closed.
On its last day of operation, the branch will host a closing event for the community beginning at 3:30 p.m. and then close at 5 p.m.
