Improvements made at Carnegie Library in Downtown Auburn; parking is addressed

The nonprofit Almost Free to All provided the Auburn City Council with an update on recent developments to breathe new life into the Carnegie Library during the Sept. 23 meeting. Almost Free to All is working with the city of Auburn, which owns the library on Almond Street downtown, and a host of enthusiastic community members to establish a new arts and culture community resource titled Branches at the Carnegie. Alexia Retallack, president of Almost Free to All, said the organization routinely checks in with residents in the immediate area of the building, and the top concern neighbors had was parking. In response to the concern, Almost Free to All looked at East Placer Street due to its amount of parking, gentler slope, minimal traffic, multiple ingress and egress and would leave open lot and on-street parking on Lincoln Way. According to Retallack, East Placer Street has 26 on-street parking spots, access to 44 public spots in the city lot and access to 28 spots in the lot behind Pelican's Roost. Retallack also noted Almost Free to All is now in partnership with the Auburn Journal, which allows anyone at the Carnegie Library to use its lot, which has 29 spaces. "What you have there is 127 parking spots available for folks who would want to use the Carnegie Library," Retallack said. "This is what we will recommend to folks using the Carnegie. This is where the best places to park are at." Retallack advised should additional parking be needed, another option would be to speak with First Baptist Church about utilizing its parking lot. Retallack also provided the council with an overview of recent improvements made to the building, including the painting of the foyer, the removal of a false wall to reveal windows and the replacement of drywall on an upstairs office area. The library's garden area has also been improved to include a table and pavers. With the $150,000 American Rescue Plan Act funding the city allocated to Almost Free to All in 2023, the organization used $50,000 for architecture, structural engineering, asbestos removal, lead paint abatement and mold abatement. For the remaining $100,000, Retallack said the organization focused on making the downstairs bathroom ADA compliant and adding a ramp to the front of the building. After pricing the projects, Almost Free to All decided to focus on improving the bathroom and it is slated to be complete in October. Other projects underway include flooring and tile in the foyer, constructing a metal artistic gate for the garden and painting designs on the carpet until there are enough funds to replace the carpet, Retallack said. According to Retallack, Almost Free to All received $11,400 in grant funding in 2023, and $2,125 so far in 2024. The organization is continuing its fundraising efforts and has applied for grants through T-Mobile and BriarPatch. Almost Free to All also plans to apply for a grant through the Historic Preservation Society in March. Additionally, Retallack shared the community has provided considerable support to the project. "This is a community project," she said. "It's in the hearts of many people. They have stories. They have history." The organization received $1,385 in donations in 2023 and $12,000 in 2024, and in-kind donations of products equals more than $17,000. To show the gravity of the community's support, Retallack stated one could take the $17,000 "and multiply it at least two or three times in terms of what we've gotten in support from the community" in terms of labor and hours. "The bigger thing about what's happening with the Carnegie, beyond the partnership with AFTA (Almost Free to All) and the city, is that the community's coming together and it's bringing a tremendous amount of energy and commitment and drive and excitement," Retallack said. "And we've already had a number of individuals requesting to use the Carnegie space and we could easily as soon as we open the doors start packing it in." The council took no action, as the item was an informational update only.