Despite the freezing temperatures, work continues at the location of the new Tyrone-Snyder Public Library at the corner of West Tenth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in Tyrone.
\nAccording to Chuck Banas, public relations director with the library, contractor Jeff Long has the building under roof, and thanks to the technology of space heaters, work is being completed inside the walls.
\n\u201cAs far as the outside goes, there\u2019s not a lot more that needs to be done,\u201d said Banas. \u201cThe rubber roofing, for sealing, needs to be installed, but that can\u2019t happen until the temperatures warm up. Jeff is using space heaters inside the building now so they\u2019re in there working. We\u2019re still anticipating a late August or early September opening.\u201d
\nAt a recent board meeting of library officials, Long said the installation of outside drivit should be in place rather soon, as construction concerning that phase began today. Banas said the board also discussed and selected the front and exterior doors for the structure.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re pleased with how far this program has come already,\u201d said Banas. \u201cWe just need this cold weather to move out so Jeff and the rest of the team can get on the roof and get it sealed. It\u2019s really coming around pretty nice.\u201d
\nLibrary officials continue to push for funding for the $625,000 project and are hoping that its Feb. 15 concert at the Tyrone High School will generate a good amount of revenue.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re about sixty percent sold out now,\u201d said Banas, noting the scheduled performance of legendary doo-wop artists The Marcels and Jimmy Beaumont and the Skyliners\u2019. \u201cAdvertisements and contests on Waly 103.9 are starting to play now and we\u2019re expecting the interest in this fundraiser to grow. It\u2019s already ballooned across the state, and we\u2019re expecting the radio advertisements to make the fund drive even more successful.\u201d
\nAccording to Banas, tickets are selling fast and he expects all 1,136 tickets to be sold within the next few weeks.
\nTickets are $30 and all proceeds will be donated to the library\u2019s building fund. They can be purchased at a number of locations, including the library, Joy Beans, the Bull Pen, Med-Center Pharmacy, Miller\u2019s Car Care and Bressler\u2019s Food Mart and Sports. There are also a number of locations in Altoona, including the library, and State College and tickets can be purchased from any board member.
\nFor more ticket information, contact 684-7929 or 684-1133.
\nThe concert will feature opening gig The Marcells, whose 1961 recording of \u201cBlue Moon,\u201d sold more than two-and-a-half million copies. The feature act is the 60s pop group Jimmy Beaumont and the Skyliners\u2019, whose single \u201cSince I Don\u2019t Have You\u201d propelled the now-legendary artists into one of the most admired and accomplished vocal groups in pop music history.
\nAccording to Library Board President Fred Thomas, the decision to build a new library came after past library boards scoured the Tyrone area for three years in search of the \u201cperfect place\u201d to construct the facility. Thomas said at least 10 locations were looked at before the board finally agreed the former Jones Building would be the ideal location.
\n\u201cWe were in the current location (Logan Avenue) for quite some time now and it just seemed we kept growing and growing,\u201d said Thomas at a recent Tyrone Area Chamber of Commerce breakfast presentation. \u201cWe thought establishing the library down on that corner would not only provide a better facility that\u2019s easier to get to, but it also brings back that special flare back to the downtown. It\u2019s a beautiful building.\u201d
\nMuch more beautiful than at the current location \u2013 and more functionable too.
\nThe facility on Logan Avenue contains just 3,515 square feet of area. Consultants recommend a minimum of 9,000 square feet for a library to serve a community of this size.
\nIt doesn\u2019t meet local codes or the Americans with Disabilities Act and has no elevator or access ramp.
\nHowever, the new facility is planned to include those important aspects.
\nAccording to Thomas, the new library will be housed in a 7,000-plus square foot facility that is completely handicapped accessible. It will also contain more reliable heating and cooling systems that aren\u2019t available at the current facility. The building design also allows for expansion should the library board decide it needs more room in the future.
\n\u201cEvery way we look at this thing is in the positive,\u201d said Thomas. \u201cI can\u2019t wait to see the doors open and everything ready to go.\u201d
\nIn addition to Thomas\u2019 update, library Director Lynne Nearhoof offered a glance at some of the many services the new facility would provide.
\nShe noted the adult area will contain more than 25,000 books and will provide four tables in the area for study. There will also be a periodicals area where visitors can view or check-out more than 55 periodicals the library currently subscribes to.
\nThere is also a children\u2019s area that has much more room than the children\u2019s area at the present location. Here, kids can look at one of almost 10,000 books geared to the younger generations.
\nThere will also be computer terminals in both areas that can be used by patrons. In all, 17 different computers will be scattered about the facility, mostly in a computer room.
\nOther highlights of the building will include a listening room named after former TAHS band director, Gerald Roberts, a local history room and a community conference room that can be utilized even if the library is not open.
\nNearhoof also said more services will be added to the programs, which includes a new projector for PowerPoint presentations.
\nAt a recent meeting of the board of directors, it was noted the library has a current membership of 4,898. There are 25,364 catalogued items. The circulation in 2001 was 32,068 and the circulation in 2002 increased to 32,851.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Despite the freezing temperatures, work continues at the location of the new Tyrone-Snyder Public Library at the corner of West Tenth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in Tyrone. According to Chuck Banas, public relations director with the library, contractor Jeff Long has the building under roof, and thanks to the technology of space heaters, work is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news-in-the-tyrone-pennsylvania-area"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=47394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47394\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=47394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=47394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=47394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}