The Jones Library Building Project

• Restores the 1928 historic building and reopens parts of the interior currently not open to the public.

• Upgrades antiquated infrastructure, including heating, cooling, and fire suppression systems.

• Creates a children’s department on one floor with enough space to meet the needs of all children and families who want to benefit from our Library. (The children’s department is currently spread out over two floors, making it difficult for parents to supervise and support their children).

• Creates a safe, dedicated teen space, including a Makerspace that allows teens to learn from experimentation and each other while sharing ideas and equipment in collaborative projects.Adds much-needed additional ESL tutoring rooms.

• Triples the number of computers and modernizes IT infrastructure.

• Creates a larger, fully climate-controlled space for the historical and literary materials housed in Special Collections, including permanent, dedicated space for Amherst’s Civil War Tablets.

• Improves the work environment for staff.

• Eliminates the use of fossil fuels and makes the building net-zero ready.

• Uses Universal Design to create a building accessible to all.

• Fosters functional, efficient, and flexible spaces designed for how libraries are used today and will be utilized in the future.