O'Fallon officials are weighing a roughly $22 million plan to scrap the city's existing library and replace it with a much larger building, and residents could get the final say as soon as this fall. The current library, built in 1994 behind the post office at 120 Civic Plaza, is struggling to keep up with modern programming and growing crowds, according to city officials. To make the case and take the community’s temperature, library staff are offering tours and a series of open-house style sessions this month while the board fine-tunes the size and cost options.
Library Director Ryan Johnson told the Belleville News-Democrat, “People can pop in and out, no set presentation. We want to give people all the information, so they can make up their own mind.” The paper reports that the library board will look at a roughly $22 million proposal and is expected to decide in June whether to ask city leaders to place a bond question on the ballot.
What’s Being Proposed
Planning documents outline a new-construction option that would add roughly 40,000 square feet of usable space, instead of a smaller addition that planners say would only put a short-term bandage on long-standing issues. The new-building concept calls for more program rooms, additional study spaces and outdoor amenities, and is designed to meet community needs for about the next 20 years. To walk residents through the concept, the library is hosting an informational open house from 6 to 8 p.m. on April 23 at the Public Safety Building, where staff plan to show visuals and field questions, according to the library’s Together O’Fallon materials. O'Fallon Public Library
What It Would Cost Homeowners
City leaders and library officials have outlined financing scenarios that rely on bond debt backed by local property taxes. A new building funded with about $20 million in bonds would add roughly $120 a year for the owner of a $275,000 home, while many homeowners already pay about $120 annually in library taxes, the Belleville News-Democrat reports. Those figures are now central to the library’s budget debate as officials decide whether to put the question to voters.
Why Library Leaders Say They Need It
The library’s 2023 master plan, along with community workshops, concluded that the current building is undersized, with hundreds of programs, long waitlists and heavy foot traffic that put pressure on space and staff. The Together O’Fallon materials highlight more than 135,000 annual visits and “hundreds of thousands” of items checked out each year, which officials say underscores the need for either a major expansion or a full replacement. The master plan also points to aging systems, as well as accessibility and acoustical problems, that a new building is designed to fix. O'Fallon Public Library
Next Steps
On the immediate calendar, library tours, the April 13 board meeting and the April 23 open house will give residents more chances to see and question the plans. Over the coming weeks, the board will continue to refine size and cost options. If members decide to advance a financing plan to the city council, council members would then weigh whether to issue bonds and possibly send the matter to voters later this year. The city calendar lists regular library board meetings and city council sessions where the proposal is expected to come up. City of O'Fallon
