Board Receives Christmas Valley Facility Needs Assessment, 8/31/2018
LAKEVIEW, Ore.—August 31, 2018—The Lake County Library district board received a professional needs assessment for a future new Christmas Valley Branch Library facility from library consultant Penny Hummel at their August board meeting. Based on library activity level and future population projections, Hummel recommended about 5,000 square feet for a new facility to serve the area for the next 20 years.
Based on annual growth rates, Hummel projected a population of 3,004 in the North Lake area by 2038. Through a series of stakeholder and community meetings this summer, Hummel learned the features in a new library most important to community members. They included a large meeting room for programs and public events, more spaces to sit and read or use technology, more computers, and more outlets to plug into. Residents also wanted more books,
audio books, and movies to check out as well as to keep the social feel of the current library, which is an important community gathering place.
“I am very pleased to have taken this first step on the road to a future library facility to serve the Christmas Valley area. People in North Lake have been very patient in waiting for attention to their facility needs from myself and the library board,’”said Amy Hutchinson, Library Director. Hutchinson also emphasized there are many more steps to complete before a new facility will become a reality.
Next steps include developing preliminary cost models for construction and operation of a new, and then determining how to raise the additional money needed both for construction and operation of a larger facility. Additionally, there is a variety of interior finish work on the Main Library in Lakeview still to be completed.
You can read a copy of the full needs assessment online at For questions about the assessment or more information about the library, contact Library Director Amy Hutchinson at 541-947-6019 or amyh@lakecountylibrary.org. For more information about Penny Hummel, visit http://www.pennyhummel.com/.