PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles Main Library will be partially closed Friday through May 20 as the final stages of a $72,000 reconfiguration project are completed.

The closure will allow the library at 2210 S. Peabody St. to carry out the final stage of a phased project that has been under way since January.

Library patrons, however, will still be able to access materials through a reservation station in the lobby.

Limited checkout services will be available from noon to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday, using a service area set up in the library’s Carver Meeting Room.

Patrons may use a computer to place holds, pick up held materials and browse and check out items from a mixed display of library materials.

Staff will be on hand to assist customers who are not comfortable using computers to put books on hold, said Margaret Jakubcin, assistant library director.

Daily newspapers and time-sensitive news magazines will be available to read in the lobby area, and wireless access will be available in the lobby.

Library programs will not be offered during the closure.

“In the 13 years since the beautiful Port Angeles Library was completed, customer expectations about service, comfort and access have changed dramatically,” Jakubcin said.

The biggest part of the project will be new carpets, which are in poor condition; in some spots, the carpet is a trip-hazard, she said.

Jakubcin said that the library’s cement floors will be trenched for new wiring to support updated electronics, and new carpeting will be installed.

The large, open area currently used for programming will get comfortable, movable furniture to make it a more inviting space, along with more prominent art displays and an information kiosk, she said.

“The reconfigured spaces will be both functional and beautiful,” Jakubcin said. “We’re looking forward to finishing the project and unveiling it to the public.”

The project was staged to take place over several months in order to minimize the length of the required closure period.

Popular materials will be moved closer to the main entrance for fast and easy access, and less popular items moved out of the library’s “premier real estate,” Jakubcin said.

When the library re-opens, a 25-foot-by-10-foot painting will hang from the library’s rafters, which is not part of the redesign, Jakubcin said.

The painting is part of the upcoming “River Story” art display that celebrates the Elwha River restoration, she said.

The library will resume normal hours and operations Monday, May 21, at 10 a.m.

The reconfiguration project has been entirely funded through donations from the Port Angeles Friends of the Library and other private donors.

For more information on the closure, contact Jakubcin at 360-417-8505 or AssistantDirector@nols.org or visit www.nols.org.

________

Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345 ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.