Huntley library grapples with growth in 20th year

Scott Lindsey remembers when the small staff of the Huntley Area Public Library library moved out of a 1,500-square-foot office at Algonquin Road and Church Street and into a new, 15,000-square-foot building on Ruth Road.

"We increased our floor space 10 times, but after 10 years we're already crowded again," said Lindsey, who has worked at the library for 12 years, longer than any other current employee.

The problem is that the library district, which moved into its current building in 1999, has grown faster than the library itself.

The population of Huntley alone has grown from about 5,000 to more than 25,000 since 1999. The library's number of cardholders has tracked very close to Huntley's population, rising from just under 5,000 in 1999 to almost 24,000 today, according the library.

But though they avail themselves of the library's services, library district residents shot down two recent tax increases that would have allowed the library to expand.

The library, which marks its 20th anniversary this year, decided recently to buy a trailer that will help the library ease its space crunch for a few years.

"There's really no other place in this building to expand into," library director Virginia Maravilla said. "This seemed to be about the only way to go."

The 2,800-square-foot trailer will be connected to the existing building by a covered walkway. The addition will house the children's department and enable the library to host educational programs that are currently held off site because of space limitations.

The trailer will cost about $231,000 and should be up by the end of the year, according to the library.

"It's not a huge chunk of space for us, but it will help ease the congestion that we have," said Leigh Ann Porsch, a library spokeswoman.