CRESTON — On Saturday, a grand opening event was held for the recently-constructed Creston-Dement Public Library. The festivities included a ribbon cutting, food, music and tours of the new building at 201 N. Main St. in Creston.

The building opened to the public for operations in March after a yearlong construction project to build it. A referendum passed in June 2022 that allowed the Creston-Dement Public Library District to issue $2.2 million in bonds to build a new library building on the land that was donated years ago for just that purpose. The main reason for the desire for a new building was the library outgrowing its previous space at 107 S. Main St.

Library Board President Doug Kroupa said about 300 people attended the grand opening, including local officials and community members.

“It was an absolutely amazing day,” Kroupa said. “People that started the process of a library in Creston back in the 1980s attended. Our architect and building manager came. Everyone who put the work in to make it happen came to celebrate. There were so many people from the area who have helped to continue the growth process.”

The library project had to undergo a redesign due to an unexpected $800,000 funding gap due to not receiving a state grant and higher-than-anticipated building costs. The redesigned plans made the project about a third smaller. The redesign caused about a year-long delay. 

The building was made smaller and reconfigured, while retaining its planned amenities with the exception of study rooms. The new design also allows for potential future expansion. Despite the prices of building materials rising almost 75 percent following the COVID-19 pandemic, the library’s construction was able to be done very close to its original budget, Kroupa said in recent months.

“When you get the support from the community to make something like this happen, it means a lot,” Kroupa said. “I just want to thank everyone who put in so much work to make it happen. Let’s just keep it going good and strong. It’s important that we continue to use the library and fully realize its potential.”

In recent years, the library’s longtime space saw increased use, which made a renewed push for a new library in the community.  The new building and property will lend itself well to accessibility, multiple events at once, more programs, a community garden, and less impact from trains. Kroupa said in March.

“Things have gone great since we moved into the new library,” Kroupa said. “We’ve seen a lot of foot traffic. It’s been vibrant. We’ve made about 40-70 brand new library cards. Our circulation has gone up. A lot of people have been coming in to see it.”

Kroupa said he enjoyed showing members of the community around the new library facility and detailing its amenities. The grand opening saw attendance by people of all ages and the new library is ADA compliant, unlike its previous location. The final work remaining on the library will include landscaping and the addition of a community garden. 

Kroupa and the library’s leadership thanked everyone who helped the project reach completion, namely the Berg family for their donation of the land for it 20 years ago to put the project in motion.

“It was a dream come true,” Kroupa said of the grand opening. “People can sometimes feel a let down after planning for a big event. We didn’t feel that. It was everything we hoped it’d be with everyone participating. The community was thankful to us, but that’s not why we did it. We did it to continue to grow and share knowledge and improve education.”