Sioux Center library a 'phoenix'

The library's executive director, David Netz, who before his retirement from Dordt College was a vice president and director of information services for the Sioux Center institution, says he hopes that by the time school opens in August, dozens of kids will have contributed their time and the use of their little red wagons to move the thousands of volumes that were recovered from the fire or subsequently donated to the library from their temporary home in the community center to the new 20,000-square foot facility. That is almost double the size of the 12,000-square foot library that burned and almost three times larger than its present 7,000-square foot. temporary home.

"Even through these cold winter months, you'd be amazed at the progress that is being made inside the new building," Netz explains.

Just days after the 2003 fire, the library staff moved to a corner of the community building where they were given space enough for a desk and two shelves to house the books that were in circulation when the fire broke out.

Rhonda Van Es, who is still responsible for circulation, says the staff came in wearing jeans and shorts and established a 3 by 5 card file to check out the books after their previous system was lost in the blaze started by two local residents who tossed fireworks into the library's book drop on a lark.

Later, the library staff was granted half the gymnasium and eventually all of the gym space only to find they had to align the book shelves diagonally so as not to overload the basketball floor.

"It's inefficient, but it works," says Netz. "We had to be a little bit creative to put less stress on the foundation."

Five years ago, the projections were that a new library would be built in two to three years, Van Es explains. But planning, funding and insurance issues took longer than expected.

Many of the books that will be moved were recovered and reconditioned at a cost of about $3 to $4 each after the fire and still offer a smoky odor at times, explains Netz. Others issues were donated by other area libraries and readers.

An extensive collection of donated paperback books hasn't even been cataloged since the fire, but just "blue labeled," and given to library patrons with the understanding they will be returned once read, adds outreach librarian Laurey Zwart.

The move should be relatively easy, says the library's director, as there is just 15 feet of space between the temporary and the new building. And there are two large doors that are not quite big enough to just move the shelves through with the books on them.

With all the inconveniences associated with the fire and the library's temporary home, what staffers are looking forward to most has little to do with books.

"Windows" top Van Es' list of things she's looking forward to after working in the artificially lighted gymnasium for most of the last five years.

Netz is looking forward to the possibility of having a new piano in place when the new library opens as the staff will be leaving behind an upright that had been stored in the community center until several library staffers began offering noon concerts.

"They're well-trained classical pianists," Netz says, adding that the concerts have been well-received by local residents.

Netz sees his position as library director as more than just a job to oversee the circulation of books.

"The library is a cultural center," he says. "We not only have books and information, but music, too."