New facility will house rare collections

The sun was shining, balloons were blowing in the breeze and a band set the tone for an important day in the history of IU Libraries.\nAfter years of dedication to bettering IU learning on the part of several University staff members, a groundbreaking ceremony for a new Auxiliary Library was held Monday at 10th Street and the State Road 45/46 bypass.\n"I have been here for five years, and the need for a facility like this was documented 10 years before that," said Suzanne Thorin, dean of libraries.\nAmong those at the groundbreaking were Bloomington Chancellor Sharon Brehm, Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer J. Terry Clapacs, and Fred F. Eichhorn, vice president of the board of trustees.\n"Those of us who are involved in campus planning have long held the principle that the library is the heart of every campus," Clapacs said. \nThe new library comes as a result of 13 campus libraries using 85 percent of their space and thus considered at or over capacity. \nSix of the libraries are completely full.\n"Instead of an addition to a central library, like the Main Library, many campuses are adding a facility like this because it is less expensive, and the space on the central campus is at a premium," Thorin said.\nIU's book collection grows at a rate of about 100,000 volumes each year.\nThe new building "should take a lot of stress off the existing library and the collections because we have outgrown the space," said Jim Capshew, director of Graduate Studies in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science.\nThe ALF is designed to hold 2.68 million of IU's lesser used books and other material. There is also the possibility to expand the 31,600 square feet.\nThe facility is scheduled to be completed by June. Books will be arranged by size rather than subject.\nBecause of the building's location and the manner in which the collection will be organized, books will have to be requested for use.\n"You would be able to obtain the books through your computer or \nyou could come to the desk to order a book," Thorin said.\nDropping off books could be done at any library on campus, or if a rare book, it can be read in one of the Lilly Library reading rooms.\nIn addition to alleviating pressure from the campus libraries, ALF will also consist of a $1.7 million state-of-the-art preservation laboratory. \n"There is going to be more care put into keeping the collections and maintaining the collections because we have a huge investment in books as a resource," Capshew said. "This is the core University resource."\nThe preservation laboratory is especially important because IU does not have a preservation laboratory. \nThe ALF facility is being funded by a partnership between the University and private donors.\n"The libraries have received several gifts from a variety of donors," said Beverly Byl, an IU Foundation representative.\nOne of the gifts is a $1 million donation from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. In total, the gifts should account for half of the project's funding. The University will pick up the other half.