Temporary facility to include public Internet access

By Matthew Cabe
Staff Writer

APPLE VALLEY — With the one-year anniversary of the closure of the Newton T. Bass branch library just two weeks away, Town officials confirmed last week that construction is underway on a temporary facility, complete with Internet access, adjacent to the library.

San Bernardino County spokesman David Wert recently said an exact opening date for the temporary space hasn’t been confirmed, but added that it'll open in time for the kickoff of the library’s Summer Reading Program on June 6.

Once the space opens, interconnected modular units set up in the library’s parking lot, located at 14901 Dale Evans Parkway, will provide 5,000 square feet of short-term library space, as well as what the county described as a vast collection of books for adults and children.

The most pressing issue for many Apple Valley residents amid the library’s near-12-month closure has not been books — some of which are available at the Victor Valley Museum — but public access to the Internet, which neither the museum nor the county’s Adventure Bus Bookmobile provide.

So, included within the adjacent space will be 23 computers with Internet access, a statement released by the county confirmed.

In the statement, 1st District Supervisor Robert Lovingood expressed his awareness of the “significant inconvenience” the closure has caused town residents.

“I have pushed for solutions,” Lovingood said, “and we are moving forward in order for the community to once again enjoy a full array of library services.”

Lovingood and County Chief Executive Officer Greg Devereaux met earlier this month with Mayor Barb Stanton and Mayor Pro Tem Scott Nassif to discuss county library services. Stanton stressed the need of "a full-service library" for Apple Valley citizens during the meeting, "which has proven difficult for them this past year."

"It is wonderful news that Apple Valley will have access to the library services, including computer access," Stanton said in a written statement. "It's a complex issue regarding reopening the main library, and it's going to take time, but it will reopen. I'm appreciative after meeting with Greg Devereux and Supervisor Lovingood of the complexity of repairing the facility. We thank them for coming up with a solution that will work."

The Apple Valley branch first closed in early April 2015 for work on the facility’s sprinkler system, which had shifted, but damage to the roof and six trusses was discovered during a building assessment on April 17 that extended the closure.

Cracks were observed in two other trusses during the assessment and the sprinkler system was drained.

Lovingood requested and received $2.5 million in county funding from his colleagues on the Board of Supervisors to fully fund the repairs; however, those funds won’t be used anytime soon as a start date for repairs to the closed branch remain unconfirmed.

In November, Regina Weatherspoon-Bell — a field representative for Lovingood — informed the Town Council that San Bernardino County Director of Architecture and Engineering Carl Alban made a recent trip to the town to speak with the Friends of the Apple Valley Library group.

“He did advise (the group) that the projected date for reopening of the library is late June 2016,” Weatherspoon-Bell said at the time.

County officials, however, never confirmed the tentative June reopening.

“It has taken many months of inspections and studies by engineers for both the county and insurance companies to determine the extent of the problems and discuss solutions,” the county’s statement read. “The heart of the repair work cannot begin until the end of the rainy season, so there still is no accurate estimate for when the library will reopen.”

— Matthew Cabe can be reached at MCabe@VVDailyPress.com or at 760-951-6254. Follow him on Twitter @DP_MatthewCabe.