Movin' Home: Library Leaves Jefferson Station

By Joel Frady

Shortly after 3 p.m., it seemed like a normal day for the Ashe County Public Library. Patrons carried stacks

of books to the counter as children pushed toy trains on a multi-colored tracks, but within the hour the hustle and bustle would end.

Shortly after 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 13, Ashe County Librarian Jim McQueen locked the library's doors at Jefferson Station in downtown West Jefferson, never to open those doors to the information-seeking public again.

It marked the end of the library's stay in the temporary facility, which opened on April 9, 2008. The library moved into Jefferson Station while the permanent structure, located at 148 Library Drive, underwent 14 months of expansion and renovation.

With the renovations complete, McQueen and his staff are now focused on moving home and re-opening the doors as soon as possible - though many will miss the Jefferson Station location, if only a little bit.

"It's bittersweet," said McQueen. "I'll miss being here - it's been really nice. The staff at Jefferson Station and the other people who have businesses in here have been very nice to us. They've been good neighbors - mostly I'll miss the people - but I hope they 'll come to see us up there.

"At the same time, we're very excited to get back up there," McQueen continued. "It really feels like home and it's just a marvelous facility. It's an exciting time." He noted that the renovation project took "years of planning" and there is now "a great sense of anticipation. The moment we have all been waiting for, working for and planning for - literally for years - is just about here."

Library employee Christine Blackburn said that "it's going to be great" at the renovated library, but noted that Jefferson Station "worked out really well" as a temporary location.

"I was dreading and thinking the worst, but it's turned out really well and a decent amount of people still visit us here, once they found the place," said Blackburn. She later said that many people got confused after the initial move, and that four months after opening at Jefferson Station "there were still some people having trouble finding it."

Blackburn added that she hopes that the transition back to 148 Library Drive is less confusing, but knows that they have their work cut out.

"I'm dreading all the moving but I'm really looking forward to getting settled up there," she said. "It's gorgeous."
McQueen said that their patrons also helped with the moving process by checking out large numbers of books.

"The shelves are not exactly bare, but there are quite a few items out in circulation," he said. "It means not only that we don't have to move as many books, but that people won't have to be without reading material while we're closed."

McQueen said that he expects the move itself to be quick - "three days at the most" - but that "Settling in is going to be what takes longer just because everything is going to be so very different up there.

"We're going to have to develop whole new ways of doing the things that, up until now, we've just done routinely," he continued. "We're going to have to revisit all of our processes, and I think that's going to take the most time."

While no exact date has been set for the library's re-opening, McQueen said he doesn't think "it will be any later than July 1, and it could be sooner if we're able to get up there, get moved and get settled in.

"We'll open back up just as soon as we possibly can," he said.

To find out more about the Ashe County Public Library, or for updates on when they will officially re-open, click to www.arlibrary.org or call (336) 846-2041.