If you haven’t been to Aurora Public Library District’s Eola Road Branch in a while, there’s a lot going on! So much has happened since we first shared our renovation plans with the community summer of 2024. Thanks to all the work that’s been done, we are happy to announce that Phase 2 of construction will begin very soon and that means additional changes for the branch. With renovations estimated for completion in July 2026, we’re excited to finally see our years of planning come to life!
To recap what’s happened so far, demolition for Phase 1 of the renovations began in February of this year. That meant that all library operations on the east side of the building—including the Large Meeting Room, eSports lab, computer lab, study rooms, and material check-in operations—had to be either relocated or temporarily paused. Now, all the new interior walls on that side of the building are in place, and the foundation for the new Large Meeting Room addition has been poured. We also found ways to celebrate with the community throughout the process. Our recent “Goodbye Eola, Hello Eola” event was a blast, with music and activities for the whole family (and a special appearance from Rory)! Attendees also viewed the Staircase Stories exhibit, a collection of memories submitted by customers and staff about their experiences at Eola Road Branch through the years (on display until August 7). Behind the scenes, staff have prepared the collection for Phase 2, which involved making lists, checking shelves, and marking items that will continue to circulate while we operate as Eola Express.
Eola Express will offer a curated collection of approximately 22,000 items for browsing (15% of the current collection), with a focus on new releases and popular titles. Whittling down the collection took months of planning across multiple departments. Some items (such as Eola’s World Languages collection) will be temporarily moved to other locations to remain accessible to customers. “Eola Express will be small but mighty!” said Eola Road branch manager, Krista, “as we’ll be going from 34,000 square feet down to 5,300. It wasn’t easy fitting the whole branch into a few thousand square feet, but we managed to maintain access to the services and collections most used by our community.”
You’ll still be able to pick up your holds, return your APLD items, and have access to material from both of our other branches, LinkIn and Findmore consortia, and from Inter Library Loan to conveniently pick up at Eola Express. A limited number of public computers will be available along with printing and copying services. And to the delight of many, access to the Fox Valley Park District will be restored, as Eola Express will be accessible exclusively through the west building entrance. “We are grateful to our customers and staff for hanging in there with us and are thrilled to continue serving this community throughout construction of an updated and expanded Eola Road Branch,” added Krista.
When its duty as Eola Express is complete next summer, the space will be transformed to fulfill its original design intent with a whopping 44,000 square feet. “When the renovations are finished, that same space will become a vibrant, busy community gathering place with focal points for making, reading, studying, and socializing,” said executive director, Michaela. “We heard from the community that the branch needed more study rooms, more access to public computing, more seating, and a Makerspace. We look forward to offering all of those things and more!”
As we move into this exciting next chapter of the Eola Road Branch transformation, we’re so thankful for your continued support and patience. The journey from vision to reality is well underway, and we’re thrilled to share each milestone with our community. Whether you’re visiting the new Eola Express or following along from your home, we promise to keep you informed every step of the way. For all renovation updates, visit www.aurorapubliclibrary.org/renovations.
Andrea Tiberi is the communications coordinator for the Aurora Public Library District.