Cook Memorial's Vernon Hills branch has a manager

It isn't even built yet, but the Cook Memorial Public Library District's Vernon Hills facility already has a manager.

Longtime employee Colleen Koebel will run the library once it opens on Aspen Drive in 2010, officials announced this week.

"I know how important library services are to the community, and I'm looking forward to being a part of that," Koebel said Wednesday.

Koebel joined the Cook Memorial staff in 1993 as an assistant children's services librarian and helped develop the district's early literacy and teen volunteer programs. She most recently served as the district's school services coordinator.

As the manager of the Aspen facility, she will supervise all of the building's operations.

"Ms. Koebel has the skills and the experience that we are looking for in this key position," library Director Dan Armstrong said in a news release.

Library board President Bonnie Quirke praised Koebel's enthusiasm and experience, particularly her work serving Cook Memorial's younger patrons. Her promotion "sends a strong message that the library is committed to increasing service and values its youth," Quirke said.

The promotion is effective immediately. Koebel will oversee the district's temporary branch in Vernon Hills' village hall until the new facility opens.

Construction at the Aspen Drive site began late last year. The $7 million project will result in a 20,000-square-foot facility designed to serve the southern portion of the large district.

The new building is set to open in April.

"I can't tell you how excited I am about the future of the Aspen site," Cook Memorial board member Mary Ann Phillips said. "In many ways, it's sort of like a many-year dream come true."

While the work is being done in Vernon Hills, the main Cook Memorial library in downtown Libertyville is being remodeled and expanded, too. That $7 million project is set to wrap up in fall 2010.

For updates on the construction projects, visit cooklib.org.