OAKLAND, CA – Oakland Public Library Director Jamie Turbak is pleased to announce that two applications submitted to the California State Library’s Building Forward Library Facilities Improvement Program in 2023 were approved for funding.
Oakland’s Main Library (125 14th Street) will receive $4,197,389 to pay for a new roof, skylight repair, critical upgrades to the electrical system, installation of a new boiler control system, a heat pump to cool and heat the auditorium, and improvements to lighting, flooring, ceiling and more.
The Melrose Branch Library will receive $3,986,708 to fix the foundation, improve drainage, install a heat pump, make electrical upgrades, and to repair the roof, skylights, plumbing and more. Funding is also allocated for special planning so that improvements will be made in line with the historic nature of this Carnegie library which opened in 1916.
The terms of these grants required the City Oakland to provide matching funds. Approved by the Oakland City Council in October 2023, the match will be provided by Measure KK and Measure U funds.
“Without the matching funds provided by Measures KK and U, the library would not have been able to apply for these Building Forward grants. I am grateful to Oakland voters and the California State Library for making the funding for these critical improvements possible. I’d also like to acknowledge the Department of Public Works, whose team is an essential partner on all of our building projects,” Ms. Turbak said in her announcement.
These two grants are part of the second round of the California State Library’s $487million Building Forward Library Improvement Grant Program – the largest investment in public library infrastructure in California history. Oakland received two awards in late 2022 for Round 1, as well: $1.7 million for the African American Museum and Library at Oakland and $2.1 million for the Brookfield Branch Library.
For more information, please call Jamie Turbak at (510) 238-6610 or visit the California State Library’s website.
This project is supported in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library.
