On July 28, 2022, Nevada County, the Town of Truckee, and Friends of the Truckee Library hosted a tour for Greg Lucas, California’s 25th State Librarian. The tour was an opportunity to showcase the current staff and programming and the vision for a modern community hub.
The Truckee Donner Recreation and Park District have committed to a 2-acre parcel at the Truckee Regional Park for a new Truckee Library. LDA Partners has created architectural renderings of the new facility, which presents a space that is bright, open, inviting, and timeless, employing green building practices throughout and incorporating the beauty of Truckee in its lines and curves. The 20,000 square foot space will house youth and teen areas, private and open gathering spaces, meeting rooms both large and small, a community room for events, and plenty of space for programming, reading, and research.
“The visit by the State Librarian was an opportunity to demonstrate the significant efforts that have been made in creating support for this project and the collaboration between the Town, County, and Friends of the Truckee Library, as well our regional partners,” said Hardy Bullock, Nevada County District 5 Supervisor. “It was a great demonstration of the strong, cooperative relationships and momentum behind this project.”
Central to the visit was a presentation by Bobbi Luster, Truckee Library’s Branch Manager, about the capacity of the current library and the programs, services, and resources the library provides to the community.
“As terrific as Bobbi and her team at the library are, Truckee has outgrown its current library,” said Greg Lucas, California State Librarian. “It was a pleasure for me to see Nevada County officials, Truckee officials, and Placer County officials working collectively to make a new community library a reality.”
Participating in the tour was Yolanda Cookson, Field Representative for Assemblywoman Megan Dahle, Nevada County District 5 Supervisor Hardy Bullock, Placer County District 5 Supervisor Cindy Gustafson, Truckee Town Council Members, Friends of the Truckee Library Board Members, and invested community partners from Truckee Donner Rec & Park District, Truckee Donner Public Utility District, and Truckee Sanitation District.
Several community partners joined the group for lunch, including Brian Wright, General Manager for Truckee Donner Public Utility District, accompanied by Board Director Christa Finn and Blake Tresan, General Manager for Truckee Sanitation District. Their involvement in the discussion about the new library facility was important as they are significant contributors to the success of securing the new location and further demonstrate the cooperation of the regional partners in moving this project forward.
On a walkthrough of Truckee’s Regional Park, where the new library will be sited, Steve Randall, General Manager for Truckee Donner Rec & Park District, shared the history of his organization and spoke about the importance of the new library location in connecting the community with other recreational activities, community areas, and services. The Regional Park’s amenities, which vary by season, ranging from basketball to ice skating, disc golf, an amphitheater with regular events, a skate park, and river access.
The new library site is close to numerous multifamily subdivisions, the Truckee- Donner Seniors Apartments, and serviced by public transit.
“Being close to these resources would allow the library to be accessible and convenient for community members, said Louise Zabriskie, President of the Friends of The Truckee Library Board, “This location supports the vision for a modern library that provides a safe and inclusive space. It will not just offer access to books but be a community hub with broad resources and capabilities to foster community meetings, new technologies, and creative spaces.”
Nevada County, the Town of Truckee, and Friends of the Truckee Library continue to have regular stakeholder meetings to drive this project forward. For more information on the new library, visit www.truckeefol.org/new-library.
