The main portion of Central Resource Library has been closed since February 2021, and we have all been eagerly awaiting news of reopening. We are excited to announce a reopening date of February 22, 2022! A ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by County Librarian Sean Casserley will be live-streamed on our Facebook page at 2 p.m. that day.
In addition to its public service staff, Central is home to many departments that support all 14 branches. Once the work at Central is complete, you will feel the positive impact across the Library system.
We know you probably have many questions about what to expect, so we’ve put together a Construction FAQ that addresses the status of popular services like the Black & Veatch MakerSpace and Genealogy resources, more details about Little Central and where to find alternate services.
Stay tuned to our blog and @jocolibrary on social media for construction updates and photos.
General Questions
Services temporarily suspended during construction:
- Collection browsing
- Microfilm and reference collection
- Meeting, study and conference rooms
Services available at Central during construction include:
- Holds pick-up and self-check.
- Materials return inside the building (for exterior book drops, we recommend patrons use a nearby location such as Oak Park, Leawood, or Corinth).
- Nine public PCs
- Public printing / copying / scanning
- Access to public restrooms
- Community information, including tax forms
- The Black & Veatch Makerspace. MakerSpace staff is getting the space ready to be open for the public, setting up and testing the new equipment. They are also developing online programming and training content, and making changes in the mechanical room. The MakerSpace will reopen when the Central Building Update, Part 2 is complete on February 22, 2022. Live and OnDemand virtual programming from the MakerSpace is available until that time. MakerSpace kits can be checked out, and you can place holds on those kits if they are not available. More kits will be added in the coming months!
- The Genealogy desk will continue to offer virtual hours for patron access. Many online databases will continue to be available remotely.
Modified services during construction:
The Black & Veatch MakerSpace will reopen on Tuesday, Feb. 22. You may begin reserving equipment on Feb. 22 that day.
You will notice some changes in the MakerSpace when we welcome you back, including lots of new equipment, online tutorials via Library OnDemand and circulating Maker kits you can check out.
New equipment:- Two new Trotec laser cutters that are more powerful, faster, and larger.
- Two new dual extrusion Ultimaker 3d printers, and a Formlabs resin printer that bring industrial quality 3d printing capabilities.
- A new X-Carve CNC router that is both much faster and larger than our previous CNC machine. This machine is now in the CNC Router room (formerly the Sound Booth) in the MakerSpace.
- Larger and better quality monitors on most of our PCs in the MakerSpace, which is extremely helpful when doing 2d/3d design, video editing, etc.
- Higher quality Hakko induction soldering setup, and a more powerful fume extractor for soldering.
- Two new Janome sewing machines and a BabyLock serger.
- A new US Cutter vinyl cutter with vacuum hold down and optical lens.
When the Library’s Central location reopens on Feb. 22, genealogists from the Johnson County Genealogical Society will be there to help you with your family history research from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday. The Library’s collection of genealogy resources will once again be available for use. You can find more information about the work of JCGS at the Library on their website.
Services at Central have been temporarily modified during construction, which began in February 2021. The building is anticipated to fully reopen on Feb. 22, 2022. After construction, the ratio of public to staff space will stay very close to what it is today.
- During construction all materials must be returned inside Central, as the exterior materials return bins are being converted to a drive-thru window.
- Little Central is now open in a portion of our front lobby, offering limited services such as holds pickup, public computer access and restrooms.
Central's meeting, study and conference rooms will be available for walk-in use on Tuesday, Feb. 22. In the afternoon of Tuesday, Feb. 22, you will be able to reserve rooms for use on Wednesday, Feb. 23 and beyond. Once open, can be made up to 90 days in advance. There are no same day reservations.
Central's meeting, conference and study rooms will be equipped with wall-mounted display monitors that offer opportunities for collaboration through screen-sharing capabilities. You can connect to the monitors in two ways: wirelessly or through an HDMI cable. HDMI cable kits are available to checkout from staff. For more information about connecting devices to display monitors, see our Answers FAQ.
One of the benefits of this project is improvements made to the layout of the collection. The adult fiction section has been reconfigured for better access and flow. The children’s section has been relocated to a bright space with large windows and has been beautifully transformed with new shelving and collection spacing. The size of the collection, the largest in the Johnson County Library system, will remain the same.
The population of Johnson County is steadily rising, and Johnson County Library is growing to meet the needs of our community. As home to many departments that support all 14 of our branches, such as Materials Handling, IT, Events Programming and Communications, Central Resource Library is considered the heart of the system. Many staff spaces have not been updated since Central first opened in 1995 and no longer meet the needs of a modern library system of our size; we need to ensure this central hub is running as efficiently as possible to support patrons across all our branches.
The project focuses on creating efficiency in the staff spaces, with some improvements to the public spaces. You will feel the positive impact on Library service with noticeable efficiency, more services, and better use of resources. This will save taxpayer dollars in the long run.
Among the highlights:
- More study/conference rooms. This project will add or relocate five public study/conference rooms, as well as rooms on the staff side – adding availability for patrons.
- An expanded, relocated Kids area with more natural light, window seating and a storytime room.
- A new drive-thru for patron returns and holds pick-up.
- Materials Handling efficiencies. Our materials handling spaces, through which new materials, holds and other Library items flow, are being reorganized for operational efficiency. We anticipate this will result in materials being available for patrons more quickly throughout the entire Library system.
This is a continuation of the Central Building Upgrade (concept beginning in 2012, project occurred in 2014-15). We initially had planned to make upgrades to both the public and staff spaces, but we had limited funds. We prioritized completing the public spaces and making those spaces flexible for future changes, planning to complete the staff side once we had accrued the needed resources.
Johnson County Library has experienced several major changes since CBU Part 1 was completed in 2015, including the addition of a new branch in western Shawnee (Monticello), a much larger branch in Lenexa (Lenexa City Center) and additional staff to support a growing system.
And as part of our Comprehensive Library Master Plan, we anticipate relocating the Antioch branch to a smaller building on the Merriam Community Center campus in 2023. Several support staff currently working at Antioch will relocate to Central Resource Library.
Yes, but all returns to Central must be made inside the lobby as the exterior materials return is one of the areas that will be under construction. The reworked exterior book drop, which will include a drive-thru window for holds pickup, will reopen on February 22, 2022. The nearest exterior book drops to Central are at the Oak Park, Corinth, and Leawood branches.
PLEASE NOTE that items returned to Central may take a few extra days to be removed from your account. We are back-dating these items so that fines will not accrue. Please contact us at 913.826.4600 or ask@jocolibrary.org if returned items are still on your account longer than one calendar week.
While you may still assign held items from across the system to be picked up at Central, you will not be able to browse Central’s collection while the library is under construction. Popular and unique titles are being reassigned to other branches during the renovation.
Yes. The Friends Bookstore at Central has permanently closed as part of a consolidation plan unrelated to the Central Building Upgrade project. The Friends bookstores at Antioch and Blue Valley Libraries remain open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. You can also shop the Friends Online Used Bookstore anytime at FriendsofJCL.org.
Construction began in February 2021 and is anticipated to complete in Fall 2021. The building is anticipated to fully reopen on February 22, 2022.
Construction updates, including photographs, will be posted to the Central Building Upgrade page, as well as on our social media pages. Follow @jocolibrary on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube!
If Little Central does not meet your library needs, please check our Locations page to find hours and locations for our other 13 branches. The branches with the closest proximity to Central are Oak Park Library in Overland Park (1.9 miles), Antioch Library in Merriam (4 miles) and Corinth Library in Prairie Village (4.3 miles). Oak Park Library also offers Curbside Holds Pickup service.
All Johnson County Library branches are currently open with modified hours, and offer basic services such as:
- Browsable collections
- Holds pickup
- Materials return
- Computer and Internet Access, including copying and printing
- Meeting, conference and study rooms
Some staff will remain at Central to provide services. Others are being temporarily relocated to other branches throughout the Johnson County Library system.