Renovation snags keep library closed
Asbestos and pipe realignment will delay reopening
BY LAYLI WHYTE
Staff Writer

It will be at least another eight weeks before the public is permitted back into the Red Bank Public Library due to problems that have arisen during the current renovations.

After being closed Oct. 23, the library, located at 84 W. Front St., had been due to reopen in mid-December. But the recent discovery of asbestos and the need to move a sewer drain line have extended the time the library will be closed and the new projected date for a limited reopening is March 1, according to a press release from the library.

“The revised plan requires moving the sewer drain line and part of the heating system in order to excavate the flooring for the new elevator shaft,” the release states. “In addition, demolition of two chimneys in the old building revealed asbestos lining that has to be removed. As a result, there will be no heat in most of the building for a period of about four weeks. Water service will have to be turned off soon to prevent pipes from freezing.”

Mayor Edward J. McKenna Jr. said this week that he doesn’t expect that the additional work will add any significant change to the cost of the project as a whole.

Librarian Jane Eigenrauch said last week that aside from the setbacks, the work is moving along and although no particular piece of the renovation work is completed, many aspects of the work are well under way.

“They’ve started to paint the second floor,” she said, “in the old part of the Eisner building. The roof is really coming along. They’ve been working on the outside of the roof for about three weeks and they are really making progress.”

Some of the major parts of the renovations had already been postponed, according to the press release, because of delays in the installation of the new electrical service by JCP&L.

Eigenrauch said that in September, library officials canceled upcoming events through the spring in case of setbacks in the renovations, including art exhibits and the annual AARP tax assistance program, which would normally begin in February.

She said that she believes the AARP tax assistance program will take place at a different local library.

“I see people in the downtown and at the post office,” she said, “and everyone wants to know when we’re going to reopen.”

Until the library reopens its doors, its employees are keeping busy, according to the press release, by catching up with important projects, such as revising library policy and procedural materials, revising staff job descriptions, planning programming, and taking state required education classes.

Due to the extended closing, all due dates on borrowed books have been automatically extended, although materials can be dropped in the book drop at the library at any time, according to the press release.

The renovations of the library, which was built in 1937 for the Eisner family and donated to the borough in the 1960’s, are a result of a lawsuit brought against the borough for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

A complaint had been filed against the borough in 2002 because of the lack of accessibility for people with disabilities in certain borough facilities, including the library and Count Basie Park.

The children’s section of the library is located in the basement of the structure and has no wheelchair accessibility.

The elevator planned for the building will be partially covered by a $60,000 grant from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs.

The architectural firm of Kaplan, Gaunt and DeSantis prepared the bid specifications for the project, and the Borough Council awarded a $1.2 million contract to Santorini Construction, Neptune.

During the closure, library patrons are encouraged to take advantage of online library services, which can be found at www.lmxac.org/redbank.

Anyone with a Red Bank Public Library card may use it to borrow materials from other libraries in the Libraries of Middlesex Automation Consortium (LMXAC), including locations at Long Branch, Matawan-Aberdeen, and Old Bridge. More information about these sites can be found at the LMXAC web site.