San Rafael, CA – A proposed agreement between the Marin County Free Library (MCFL) and the Novato Unified School District (NUSD) would result in moving the South Novato branch of the library to a nearby district-owned site and doubling its size.
The proposed agreement, approved February 3 by the school district’s Board of Trustees, goes before the Marin County Board of Supervisors on February 10.
The School Community Library at Hamilton is slated for a site on C Street, just less than a mile west of the current branch location in the converted Hamilton Field hangars. The proposal would double the size of the library branch, from 3,000 square feet to 6,000, and would be adjacent to two more school buildings that would offer educational and community programs. The complex would be located just a few steps from the Hamilton K-8 public school, the North Bay Children’s Center, the Novato Charter School and the future commuter rail station for the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit line.
“We’re excited to partner with the County to expand library services in Southern Novato as well as provide additional educational opportunities for students and the community,” said Karen Maloney, NUSD Assistant Superintendent.
“This is an excellent example of government agencies working collaboratively for a common community purpose,” MCFL Director Sara Jones said.
The School Community Library would have a dedicated youth area, a model classroom, a media center and a “makerspace” area where kids, teachers and families are encouraged to experiment with creative projects and inventions. Those areas would support programs that develop skills in communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking. The school district shall have priority use of the model classroom media center and makerspace. When not in use for district programs, the spaces will be available to support Education/Library Services or other uses supervised or offered to the community by and under the supervision of the MCFL.
The MCFL dedicated $1.485 million to find an alternate space for the Hamilton library branch in November 2014; the current lease expires at the end of June 2015. If the partnership is approved by the Supervisors, the County’s contribution would be $1.1 million and NUSD’s would be $484,000. The County’s ongoing lease payments for School Community Library at Hamilton would be dramatically less than the previous lease for the South Novato branch.
The Board meeting is to start at 9:30 a.m. in the Board chamber, Suite 330 of the Marin County Civic Center, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael. Board meetings are webcast live and aired on Comcast public access TV stations.