Volume 3, Issue 2, Spring 2002

Construction of Storage Facility to Begin This Summer

Construction of the Library's high-density storage facility will begin this summer. Situated on Oak Street between John and Daniel Streets, the site is the location of the former Harlan E. Moore warehouse. It offers ample space for a state-of-the-art building that will house efficiently items from the collection that are used less frequently. Scheduled for completion in fall 2003, the facility will be constructed in phases and initially hold two million volumes-with a potential expansion capacity of seven million volumes.

Utilizing industrial-type warehouse shelving and year-round climate controls, the Oak Street facility will provide a superior environment for the storage of library materials. It also will contain a conservation laboratory and circulation area. Users will be able to check out materials in storage from any library unit on campus, and a daily delivery service to these locations will be offered. For those who wish to use the new facility, both a reading room and parking will be available.

Library staff are preparing for the first phase of construction, which will ease crowded conditions in the Main Library bookstacks and departmental libraries. They are selecting items for relocation, completing paperwork, updating databases and the online catalog, and marking books with streamers. Currently, materials are processed and returned to the shelves, but they will be moved later to a temporary holding area to be inventoried. As a result, retrieval times for certain items could be delayed up to but not longer than one day. After materials are transferred to the facility, they will be readily available.

Faculty are asked to rely on Library personnel for assistance during the transfer of materials. For current information about the storage facility, visit the Library's Office of Planning and Budgeting website at: 

http://www.library.uiuc.edu/administration/circ