As interim Lakewood Library sees progress, $270k approved to demolish old building soon
On Wednesday the Pierce County Library System’s Board of Trustees approved an order that would set in motion the demolition of the beloved Lakewood Library building on Wildaire Road SW. The demolition cost will not exceed $273,000, the order stated.
That move is the latest step in the plan to demolish the old Lakewood Library and rebuild after the 59-year-old building was found to be in dire shape.
Work on an interim Lakewood Library site is underway a half mile north on the corner of Gravelly Lake Drive Southwest and Alfaretta Street Southwest. The site preparation is nearly complete and installation of the building is expected to happen this month, said Mary Getchell, marketing and communications director with the Pierce County Library System.
The library board received eight demolition bids for the Wildaire Road SW property ranging from around $247,711 to $805,778 and approved the lowest bid from Skycorp, Ltd. on Wednesday.
Once a demolition schedule is formalized, the Wildaire Road SW building is expected to be taken down in the coming months, Getchell said in an email to The News Tribune. The Lakewood Libraries Building Community Advisory Committee has recommended keeping the new library at the same location, but if that’s not possible the committee recommended building a new library in an equally accessible location, she said.
A study session to consider a game plan for long-term planning for the downtown Lakewood Library will happen April 20.
Last April the board declared the building at Wildaire Road SW “surplus” to the library system’s needs. The 59-year-old building closed its doors in June 2022 after inspections found its dilapidated state would need about $22 million in repairs and replacements to bring it up to code. Appraisers say the current value of the property is $1.5 million.
The 1.67-acre Lakewood site, before its closure, was one of the system’s most used, with nearly a quarter of a million people visiting the library annually before the pandemic, as previously reported by The News Tribune.
According to a memo in the board agenda Wednesday, Skycorp, Ltd. will perform hazardous remediation of the site prior to demolition and coordinate the relocation of a huge cross-section of Douglas fir dating back to the 1300s and colloquially known as “The Big One” to Fort Steilacoom Park. Local architect James Guerrero has been tasked with designing and building a new home for the fir slice at Fort Steilacoom Park.
Once the building is demolished and the construction debris cleared, the site will be backfilled and compacted with suitable soil for the next phase of the project, the memo said.
The interim library is expected to be between 7,000 and 10,000 square feet and will offer a full range of services, including book browsing and check outs, Wi-Fi and computer access, classes and events for all ages, and spaces to read and study.
