Library Use and Facilities
There has never been a busier time for public libraries than today. More US citizens per capita have library cards than ever before, and library user-ship continues to rise locally and nationally. From 2006 to 2010 Clackamas County Libraries enjoyed a circulation increase of 9.5%, Multnomah County circulation increased 20% and Washington County, with new libraries built in the last decade, increased by 55.8%.
Voters in Lake Oswego passed a measure in 1974 to build a 35,000 square foot library. Due to neighborhood concerns and site constraints a 27,100 square foot facility was built. Almost immediately the City Council and citizens worked to address the need for a larger facility that would meet the needs of citizens. Studies in the 1980s and 1990s recommended a 46,000 square foot library and a branch. In 2006, The Independent Study of the Clackamas County Library System Facilities Assessment recommended the replacement of the current building with a 64,854 square foot facility because of the high level of use. That same year BOORA Architects recommended a 65,581 square foot library.
On July 25th 2012 the City Council passed a resolution 7-0 to place a $14 million general obligation bond on the November ballot for a new library. This bond would fund a portion of the overall Library building project.
Proposed New Library at First Street and B Avenue
A new library of approximately 60,000 square feet was proposed as part of the Lake Oswego Redevelopment Agency's North Anchor project at First Street and B Avenue in downtown Lake Oswego. On November 5, 2012 bond measure 3-405 failed. For more information and updates about the North Anchor project go to Lake Oswego Redevelopment Agency, see also Supporting Documents and Web Links below.
