RIVER FALLS — The River Falls Public Library is moving along in its process seeking a major remodel, heading to the bidding stage shortly to determine exact costs of each portion of the project.

The project has already received a $4.08 million grant from the state’s Flexible Facilities Program, but the grant will not cover the entirety of the project. The rest of the money will come through community fundraising efforts, which Library Director Tanya Misselt expects to pan out due to the willingness of River Falls residents to get involved when needed.

“We’re not adding to the size of this building. We’re reconfiguring it for the needs for today or in the future,” Misselt said. “It was built for 25 years ago; well, the way we use the space has changed.”

After a space needs analysis and many meetings with staff and the community, the library pinpointed what needed to be done during a potential remodel. The library will now open a bidding window from the end of April to the beginning of May.

“We’re getting kind of some early warnings that the cost is going to have gone up considerably,” Misselt said.

Misselt said there is a lack of small meeting room space, so they will add glassed in small meeting rooms and study rooms. The history collection will be moved to create a telehealth space where people can contact doctors and a “tech nest” to showcase technology that can be checked out.

“Right now that technology is closed up in black cupboards. People can’t see it. If they can’t see it, they don’t know we have it,” Misselt said. “We have a ton of technology.”

The teen area will also receive an update, glassing it in to give privacy. The children’s staff desk will be moved so they can provide service to both the children’s area and the teen area.

A quiet room for lactating mothers or others that need it, a larger boardroom and increased office space are some of the other changes in the remodel.

“Right now, our workspace has spilled over into the library proper, and it’s horribly unattractive,” Misselt said.

The library is over the required number of bathrooms it needs by law, so the plan is to “reconfigure” bathroom space into a family bathroom and janitor space. There are also some smaller details included like a window at the library book return, so children can see the conveyor belt in action rather than having to peek through the return slot.

Misselt said the state’s grant funding showcases the value of public libraries as a whole, but the community has been supportive of the River Falls Library, specifically.

“It speaks more to the state recognizing the value of public libraries,” Misselt said. “I do think that this community has a long history of loving and caring for this library.”

Misselt theorized that as a city with a university, more people see the value of the library.

One thing Misselt has heard from the community is a question of why the library needs to be updated when the building is fairly young.

“Well, it was originally built 25 years ago, and the audio-visual technology in all of the meeting rooms and the boardroom are antiquated to say the least,” Misselt said. “The internet was just becoming something when this library was built, so the need is there.”

Misselt advised anyone curious to go to the library’s website, take a tour of the library or attend a speaking engagement to learn more.