Pikes Peak Library District is bringing new Library services to the fast-growing communities of Eastern El Paso County with the new High Prairie Branch Library.

QUICK FACTS about the HIGH PRAIRIE BRANCH LIBRARY:
Service Area: Serving Black Forest, Calhan, Peyton, Falcon, Rush, Ellicott, Yoder and other northeast El Paso County communities.
Location: Near the intersection of Highway 24 and Meridian Road, next to the Farmer’s State Bank in Falcon.
Size: approximately 6,000 square feet
Project Budget: $1,613,200
2008 Fundraising Goal: $574,000 (36% of total)
Land: Donated by the Pieper Family and Farmers State Bank
Collection on Site: 14,000 items
Public Computers: 10
Public-use Laptops: 6

Farmers State Bank Community Meeting Room, wireless technology, teen area, drive-up book drop, study rooms, exhibit space, fireside reading area, access to the District's 1.3 million collection items, and more!

Donations make the difference between an adequate public library system and a great community resource. Your gift to this project will help us reach our fundraising goal of $574,000. Donations will be used for constructing, furnishing, and equipping the new library for public use. As an added incentive to support the building project, it qualifies for Enterprise Zone status, which provides additional tax incentives for gifts of $250 or more.

To contribute cash or in-kind materials, fixtures, or furniture, or to pledge your support, please contact the PPLD Foundation at (719)531-6333, x2205.

1. When will the new High Prairie Branch Library in Falcon be built?


We hope to start construction in March 2009 and be finished by early 2010. The transfer of title to the land from our donors, the Pieper family and Farmer’s State Bank, requires a variety of preliminary work to be done for El Paso County, including studies and reports about geotechnical, environmental impact, drainage, fire suppression, and the recording of easements, among others. Each requires significant time to develop. This work must be completed before construction can begin.


2. Construction costs are rising dramatically. How much have they gone up?


Our architects, Humphries-Poli, a firm that specializes in designing public libraries, relate two current projects that illustrate the manner in which construction costs have risen in the past few months. Both are small libraries, similar to the High Prairie branch we're planning in Falcon. We have budgeted $269 per square foot for construction for this 6,300 square foot building. By comparison,
• The Bennett Library, a 7,000 square foot building east of Denver, cost $258 per square foot.
• The new, 7,500 square foot library in Mancos, in southwest Colorado, was originally budgeted at $200 per square foot. Actual costs have been $350 per square foot.

G.E. Johnson Construction is working with PPLD to provide estimates of costs during the design process. Our project manager cites
• Surging prices for metal and petroleum products
• Higher costs for lumber and plywood. Prices rose about nine percent in the two-month period from April to June 2008
• Rising prices for structural steel, which is going up each month by about $20 per ton
• Increases in the prices of copper, steel piping, metal studs, conduit and asphalt, which are each expected to increase in cost by about 20% in the next six months
• Jumps in transportation costs for construction materials. We all have endured the big jumps in gasoline costs. A year ago at this time gasoline cost about $2.65 per gallon. Now it's over $3.50. G.E. Johnson Construction tells us that one of their vendors recently increased the cost per truck load for delivery of materials from $1,000 to $5,000.
• An overall prediction that construction costs will by .76% each month


3. Public library construction costs, on average, are more than typical commercial construction. Why? Costs for construction of an average commercial building in Colorado Springs currently run about $125 per square foot “to the shell,” with an additional $50-100 per square foot provided by the owner for tenant finish. Public libraries are different from commercial space. Here are some examples:
1. They need additional structural support to handle the heavy floor loads that result from rows of book shelves. (Libraries require about 150 lbs. per square foot, versus about 100 lbs. per square foot for commercial space).
2. Libraries require a great deal of IT infrastructure and bandwidth capacity to simultaneously run many computers, self-check machines, and copiers, as well as accommodating laptop users in growing numbers.
3. Libraries are built to last a long time. Commercial space may have a lifetime of 25-50 years. Public libraries tend to stay around for a century or more. Materials must be durable and able to take hard wear.
4. Libraries have heavy usage, i.e., heavy occupancy loads. Commercial space generally is planned for about 100 square feet per occupant. Libraries are built to a standard of 7.5 square feet per occupant. This has an impact on how large the mechanical systems must be, the size and durability of restrooms, and how much air must be exchanged to maintain a healthy environment.
5. Because they are around for such a long time, libraries must be designed so that they can change over time, with flexible use of space, in order to accommodate more users in the future. That flexibility is a bit more expensive at the time of build-out, but saves taxpayer dollars in the long run.
6. Libraries need more natural and enhanced light for good reading and computer use, which increases their cost over a typical commercial facility.


4. A smaller building (which is all we can afford right now) will typically cost more per square foot than a larger one.
• Architects Humphries-Poli have designed three libraries recently in the Denver area. The cost rises per square foot as the size decreases. Why? A big building and a small building still have the same spaces- restrooms, mechanical systems, reading rooms, and staff areas. The areas that get smaller are the cheapest areas to build: the open areas where book stacks go. Three recently built libraries in the Denver area illustrate this:
• The Brighton Public Library is 20,000 square feet. It cost $235 per square foot to build.
• A new branch of the Thornton Public Library is 25,000 square feet. It cost $230 per square foot to build.
• Another Thornton library is 40,000 square feet and cost $211 per square foot to build.


5. We are trying to incorporate as many green features in the High Prairie branch library as our budget will allow. This may mean higher costs up front, but the return on investment over time as well as the benefits for a sustainable community warrant our going in this direction. Some examples:
• A raised floor which will allow us to place heating and air conditioning near where the people are, rather than having warm and cold air fall from the ceiling
• Timber from the pine beetle killed forests in the mountains of Colorado
• Maximized daylight from clerestory and other windows to cut down need for electric lighting
• Low-flush toilets that conserve water
• Occupancy sensors that will turn off lights when no one is in an area
• Environmentally friendly carpet, furniture and counter tops that use recycled materials