The Renton downtown library is safe and meets building codes for its current use.

However, it would require significant upgrades to meet structural codes if it was to be re-adapted for a new library as envisioned by the City of Renton and the King County Library System.

The decision to relocate the current downtown Renton library to the site of the former Big 5 Sporting Goods store on South Third Street has again raised the question: Why not keep the iconic downtown library that spans the Cedar River?

In an interview with the Renton Reporter this week, city officials and King County Library System staff answered those lingering questions and the reason behind the move.

“I think that’s the whole key is that any time you’re going to do a substantial amount of work to a building, there’s a certain tipping point at which the new work that you’re doing causes new codes to come into play,” said Peter Renner, facilities director for the City of Renton.

There are potentially so many things to be upgraded that “basically you have the shell to work with an everything else would go,” he said.

The current downtown library was built in 1965. It has survived  earthquakes and is in good condition, said Paul Fagét. He is the structural engineer from firm Swenson Say Fagét that did the initial evaluation of the site.

“However, the standards have changed since then, so if this building were to be reused, re-adapted, then that would be an opportunity to modernize the building to upgrade the structure along with all the other systems,” Fagét said.

The city owns the building and still plans to put it to a new use; it will ask for the public’s help to determine that new use. At that point the city would still want to upgrade the building to current building codes.

What also tipped the scale to moving from the current location is that it would cost even more money to adapt the current location as a library and set up a temporary library while construction was taking place.

Because the library is over the river, the permitting process could be lengthy, meaning there could be a temporary library for a long time.

“And that adds to the expense,” said Renner. “Now we didn’t factor that into the cost model, we just knew it would be there if that was the case.”

The main goal of KCLS, in conjunction with the city, is to develop a site that would have maximum visibility and accessibility. Their plan is to make every square foot of the library usable by patrons, not just staff.

For example, in the current library, there is a meeting room in the back, off the children’s wing that’s far larger than its everyday use and not easily monitored by staff. KCLS plans would convert that space so that it’s more functional and visible.

There’s limited places in the building people can use to plug in a laptop. The windows don’t make the best use of the Liberty Park setting. Some of the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system has been replaced, but it doesn’t have the efficiency to meet the current code.

“So when you start with a new building on a new site, obviously building with that flexibility becomes just part of the game plan from out the door,” said Dri Ralph, facilities design coordinator for KCLS.

Officials point out, too, that the current downtown library also includes the space for administrative offices for the former library system. All the space in the new library will go toward library uses.

There is the perception that a downtown site would attract squatters off the street who might stay at the library. KCLS says that while all are welcome, it has a plan for people behaving badly.

“We do have standards of conduct that people will need to adhere to, so we do try to work really well with our public and our staff to make it a safe and comfortable space for everyone,” said Kay Johnson, KCLS director of facilities development.

She thinks adding more activities downtown is going to help the behavior issue, with more people around to calm down the area.

Parking was a critical issue of consideration as well. There are 135 parking spaces in a one-block radius to the new site, not counting a parking garage in the next block. The current library doesn’t offer as much room with library parking shared with Liberty Park patrons. Additionally, a person can park for two hours for free in the garage next to the new site.

“And we were excited about the downtown location. We think it will provide the kind of visibility that a civic building in a developing city would really like,” said Johnson.

It is estimated that land acquisition, design and construction will cost $9 million to $10 million for the project, which the city has set aside from funding previously spent operating the Renton Library System to finance the construction of new libraries, including one in the Highlands.

The community will participate in the design process.