Gurnee’s Warren-Newport library closed five days next week

Warren-Newport Public Library in Gurnee will close for five days next week to accommodate expansion and renovation work.

Library Director Stephen Bero said nonfiction stacks will be shifted to the east wing so major work can occur on the building’s west end. The library will be shut down from Monday through Friday, with reopening set for 9 a.m. Saturday, May 21.

Bero said he expects disruption to be minimal to library patrons as construction moves into the second phase. For example, he said, final exams for Warren Township High School students aren’t scheduled until May 25.

“We tried to time (the shift) so it wouldn’t have much of an impact on finals,” Bero said Tuesday.

Bero said the $8 million renovation and 4,500-square-foot expansion still is on target to be mostly finished in September. Officials said computer access and seating will be limited through August.

Larger restrooms, more meeting space, additional study rooms and a dedicated area for teenagers are among the project’s highlights. Warren-Newport spans about 51,000 square feet off O’Plaine Road and was last expanded in 1997.

“We want to be 90 percent completed in September when the school year starts again,” Bero said.

Warren-Newport’s bookmobile will be available to patrons Monday through Friday. In addition, interlibrary loan privileges are available to Warren-Newport cardholders at facilities in Grayslake, Lake Villa, Libertyville and Zion.

Library staff will be moved temporarily into the quiet reading room. Tables, chairs and study carrels will be moved to off-site storage next week.

Serving about 60,000 residents, the library district includes all or most of Warren and Newport townships, including Gurnee, Wadsworth, Park City, Wildwood, Grandwood Park, Old Mill Creek and Grayslake.