"'Mac' McInnis said he wouldn't believe it until he walked through the door," said Sue Kraus, who was on the Citizens Steering Committee for a New Library, which started working toward the facility more than eight years ago. "Well, now I've walked through the door."

While the shell of the library is mostly complete, Library Director Sherry Taber said the next six months will be busy finishing the interior and exterior patios and landscaping. Because of the heavy snows this winter, an ice-melt system will be added from the main entrance to the curb.

"New technology will allow us to do the job with pretty much the staff we have now," she said about the library, which is almost four times the size of the current library. Conveyor belts will take books and other materials from both lobby and drive-through book drops to one central location, where staff can check their condition before returning them to circulation.

"People make an analogy to DIA's baggage handling," Taber said. "I say, 'Yeah, but I've seen these, and they work.'"

Using another technology, each individual item will be marked with Radio Frequency IDentification, allowing librarians to run a machine down a row of shelved books and determine which ones are out of order. Patrons will self-check out all items.

"I tell people that if they want to get a jump start on the new library, they should try the self-checkout now," Taber said. "There's often a line at the circulation desk, and the machine is really easy to use."

Because technology is changing so fast, 18-inch raised floors will allow easy access to mechanical systems and wiring for upgrades.

"The heating and air conditioning will be much more controlled than in the current library," Taber said. "People in staff areas can work compatibly together if one likes it warmer and the other one likes it cooler."

Other features of the library include a small cafe, a book sale area for the Friends of the Library and a young-adult section.

"Those kids wanted to do things without being shushed," Taber said. "There will be '50s-style diner booths next to the window so they can see and be seen as people are coming off the bike path."

While everyone had favorite areas, the people touring Monday all agreed about one thing: The numerous windows with views brought them joy.

"I like all of the natural light," fundraising-committee member Cindy Cortese said. "It keeps you happy."

Judith Reynolds and Steve Redding are the co-chairpeople of the Opening Events Committee. The official ribbon cutting is scheduled for 4 p.m. Dec. 1.

"We're having an event every day for a week after the ribbon cutting," Reynolds said. Redding added that there will also be monthly events through 2009.

Library usage continues to grow. In 2007, the adult section averaged 80 items per hour borrowed, up from 75 in 2006.

The growth in the children's area has been even higher, with an increase of almost 300 new children with library cards, about 15 percent. Also, items checked out by children jumped to 6,908, up more than 31 percent.

Fundraising has also been effective, with the campaign shooting for a goal of $675,000 by Nov. 1, so the library can take advantage of a matching grant from the Gates Foundation for $75,000. More than $500,000 has been raised thus far.

"So far, the fundraising campaign has been quiet," Florence "Foxie" Mason, a co-chairwoman for the committee, said. "Because of the generosity of the community, we haven't needed to do a public campaign. But we're encouraging anyone who wants to have a part in a building that will last decades, we hope they will think about it."

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