The Greendale Community Learning Center will not be completed as quickly as the library director anticipated.

Greendale Schools, the Village of Greendale and the Greendale Public Library announced a partnership over the summer for the construction of a new, mixed-use facility to be called Greendale Community Learning Center (CLC).

Under the plan, the Public Library, the Health Department and the Park and Recreation Department would be housed under one roof in the current public library building at 5647 Broad Street.

When the CLC report was first released, Library Director Gary Niebuhr hoped construction would begin this fall. But that hasn't happened.

One side effect to the construction delay was the cancelation of the fall story time at the library. Niebuhr believed the library woud be under construction at this time, and canceled the program without planning for relocation.

Parents have called expressing their disappointment and are anxious for story time to start up again. Story time is expected to resume in February or March, and will likely be held at the Park and Recreation Department Education Center, 5680 Broad Street. 

Right now the three government entities are reviewing a business agreement about the management and construction of the CLC. Niebuhr says he hopes to have construction start by January and to have the CLC completed by June.

Bids will be accepted for the renovation that will provide access to the library area via Parking Street, provide a workstation at the front counter for the Park and Recreation secretary and an office for the Park and Recreation Director. The renovation will also include the creation of separate adult and youth seating areas and additional soft seating to facilitate laptop and tablet PC users.

The three partners will share the $150,000 renovation cost. 

The Village Board agreed to lend $90,000 to the library to purchase a RFID Security System with a self-checkout system, to be paid back over seven years.

The Greendale Park & Recreation Department moved into a temporary office on August 6 in the library.

As with many government collaborations, this one comes with an expected cost savings. But this one brings something a little different as well: Increased services for Greendale residents.

Sharing staff and coordinating services between the departments and school district will bring operating costs down, while providing the opportunity for new programming and expanded hours.

Click here to learn more about the upcoming CLC.