OCEAN PINES – Officials with the Worcester County Library are asking for the community’s patience as the Ocean Pines branch undergoes the installation of a new roof.
On Wednesday, work began on a month-long project to install a new roof at the Ocean Pines branch of the Worcester County Library.
And while the library will remain open for the community’s use, Worcester County Library Director Jennifer Ranck said patrons can expect noise disruptions in the coming weeks.
“We don’t think it will be the best place to study for long hours, but we hope to remain open so people can browse, check out books and do whatever they need to do,” she said. “It might be a great opportunity to check out our new Berlin branch.”
Library officials said those looking for a quiet place to study can visit the Berlin branch at 13 Harrison Avenue or the Ocean City branch at 10003 Coastal Highway.
The roof replacement is expected to last between three and four weeks, and construction fencing will be place around the perimeter of the library during that time.
“We have a kick-off meeting on Tuesday and a walk through of the building on Wednesday,” Ranck said earlier this week.
Ranck added that the library’s chimneys – identified by Public Works Director John Tustin as the cause of various water leaks at the facility – will be removed during the project. She said the decision was also a cost reduction measure.
“It was a way for us to save money rather than to rebuild them,” she said. “They were originally there for ventilation.”
Other building updates will include a new HVAC system and repairs to the large meeting room and vaulted ceiling in the adult fiction and non-fiction sections. Library officials said the entire project will be completed by January or early February of 2019.
The project comes more than four months after the Worcester County Commissioners voted unanimously to approve a guaranteed maximum price contract of $1.25 million to Whiting-Turner Contracting for capital improvement projects at the library.
Tustin told the commissioners last year the facility – built in 1999 – had experienced water infiltration and HVAC issues for some time.
For more information, contact the Ocean Pines branch library at 410-208-4014.
