Larkspur Library design plans to be unveiled

The preliminary design of the new $16 million Larkspur Library is complete and set to be released this fall.

Public Works Director Julian Skinner said the city’s development team — Alten Construction of Richmond and the Berkeley architecture firm Noll & Tam – plan to complete the design review application to present to the Planning Commission in the fall.

“Design review will be followed by completion of construction plans for building permit and then construction,” Skinner said.

Construction is set to begin in fall or winter, depending on the weather.

Plans to build a new 6,845-square-foot library and 2,500-square-foot-community space have been in the works for years. The city has elected to add an outdoor patio area, a parking lot and landscaping to the project, Skinner said.

The new library will replace the library at City Hall. The building will be at the Commons, a city-owned parcel at the corner of Rose Lane and Doherty Drive. The Commons Foundation, a nonprofit, has raised $5 million in donations. The city said it will receive a $1 million state targeted grant and a $5.2 million state library grant to assist in funding the project.

The exact details of the design elements will be released at the time of the meeting, Skinner said.

A $13.2 million contract was awarded. The new library is expected to cost $8.87 million; the new community space, $1.6 million; a separate meeting room, $387,000; site work, $1.8 million; and furniture fixtures and equipment, $500,000. The budget includes a $613,000 contingency.

In February, the City Council allocated an additional $4.7 million to the project, raising the budget to approximately $16 million. The budget amendment will pull funds from the general fund reserve to pay for more planned improvements in the library design, including landscaping and structural plans, as well as a contingency.

Larkspur has recorded greater-than-usual general fund revenue in recent years because of the need to have cash on hand for the costly Bon Air Bridge replacement project, which required reimbursement though Caltrans. The bridge project took about four years and cost $26.7 million.

The city built a cash reserve of more than $10 million by deferring payments to unfunded liabilities and seeing a rise in property taxes.

Mayor Scot Candell said the project is on schedule. He added that the city and the Commons Foundation continue to collaborate on fundraising in order to meet the ambitious design goals.

“We are expecting it to be a beautiful project when it’s done,” he said.

Candell noted that the construction would begin before the end of the year. The driveway — specifically funded by a state grant — needs to be finished before the end of the year, according to the funding requirements.

The tentative plan includes interior architecture, “flexible spaces” and both indoor and outdoor construction. There will be some effort to refine pedestrian access on Doherty Drive.

There could be approximately $800,000 in additional developments, such as a children’s patio and library, outside reading spaces, furniture and landscaping, which will be unveiled in the plan this fall.

The project is tentatively scheduled to be completed in early 2026.