1 week Ago
An overhaul of Penrose Library is entering a second phase, which includes installing a 7-foot-high fence around the entire two-level perimeter of the Pikes Peak Library District’s downtown flagship branch. The city’s Downtown Review Board recently approved the proposed exterior changes to the library at 20 N. Cascade Ave.
Bids now will be solicited from prospective vendors, said library spokesperson Denise Abbott. Construction likely won’t begin until 2025, she said. Driving the request, according to documents in the library district’s proposal, is this: “Over the past few years, the staff and management of Penrose Library have been struggling with a growing amount of garbage, human excrement, puddles of urine and discarded drug paraphernalia being scattered at the entrance of the library and the plaza and throughout library grounds.
” In addition, incidents such as trespassing, vandalism, theft, fighting, break-ins, assaults with weapons, drug sales, drug overdoses, deaths of homeless people inside and on library property, illegal camping overnight on library grounds and other criminal activity have pushed the need for such protection, according to the application. The library has sustained property damage, inside and outside the building, and has been faced with health hazards and safety infringements, the document states. The library already has made changes that include hiring more security officers, expanding the time officers spend on campus, installing new video cameras with improved resolution and identification, conducting personalized checks and cleanups of the building inside and out, encouraging people to use provided garbage cans on the property and working closely with Colorado Springs police, the application noted.
Now, it’s time for the fence, library district officials said. “All of downtown Colorado Springs experiences conduct that they (businesses and other entities) are unable to manage when they are not on site to monitor it,” Abbott said. The fence will be made of a combination of materials: wrought-iron that matches an existing fence that encloses the garden between the Carnegie Building and the Old Knights of Columbus building, and ClearVu, a heavy-duty welded-wire and mesh barrier that can be seen through but cannot be cut.
The fencing will be attractive and at the same time provide the security and comfort that is currently lacking in the area,” the proposal states. It will extend to include the upper-level and lower-level parking lots in the front and back of the building, the adjacent hall, and around the sides that flank Cascade Avenue and Kiowa Street, Abbott said. Entrances to the parking lots also will be protected, she said, with gates securing the property being closed when the library is closed.
They’ll reopen when the library opens for its scheduled hours of operation, which varies throughout the week. “We want to keep the location safe from vandalism and misuse of the property during the evening hours when our security is not on site,” Abbott said. “This will further protect this public facility that El Paso County residents’ taxes support and keeps it safer for patrons and staff.
” It’s the first and only one of 16 branches to have its entire campus fully enclosed. The second phase also includes upgrading computer labs on the lower level, reconfiguring the entrance of the children’s section on the main level, reconfiguring the east and west entrances, improving stairwells and elevators and new security hardware. Exact cost estimates are not yet available for the fence project or the remaining improvements, Abbott said.
The campus will remain open during the construction. The first phase necessitated Penrose Library be closed from Feb. 1 until its reopening on April 10 .
That work included interior remodeling to lower the height of bookshelves, create an open atmosphere on the main floor and refurbish walls, floors, furniture and signage, as well as making security upgrades and adding personal locker storage for patrons..
