City Hospital building to come down during Fayetteville library expansion kickoff

File photo/NWA Democrat-Gazette/DAVID GOTTSCHALK The Old City Hospital and the Fayetteville Public Library are seen March 5. An event will be held Tuesday to kick off the library's expansion project.
File photo/NWA Democrat-Gazette/DAVID GOTTSCHALK The Old City Hospital and the Fayetteville Public Library are seen March 5. An event will be held Tuesday to kick off the library's expansion project.

FAYETTEVILLE -- What goes up, must come down, and in this case, it's the former City Hospital building next to the library.

The project to expand the public library will officially begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday with a demolition kickoff. City officials invite the public to come to the event and pay respects to the building before it is removed.

Voters in August 2016 supported a millage increase to help pay for a 70,000-square-foot expansion of the library. A state Supreme Court decision settling a land dispute over the site south of the existing library came in March 2017.

Seeing the yearslong effort come to fruition represents a milestone for the project, Library Executive Director David Johnson said.

Library officials want to build on the legacy and spirit of community the original City Hospital invoked, Johnson said. Bricks from the building will be crushed and used to create the foundation for the new space. Bricks also will be available for the public to take home.

Demolition should take three months, followed by grading and site preparation. Construction on the expansion should start early next year and wrap by summer 2020, slightly ahead of previous projections, Johnson said.

Crossland Construction and architecture firm Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle, both of whom were involved with the original Blair Library in 2004, are overseeing the expansion. The project will double the size of youth services, add an innovation center, a multipurpose venue with seating for 700, a genealogy and history space, more room for meetings and additional outdoor features and green space.

For more information, call 856-7105.

NW News on 07/16/2018

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