New Delmont library building on schedule for December completion

Delmont Library Board member Dave Weber is hoping to have quite a Christmas present for patrons, shooting for Dec. 23 as the move-in date for the new library building off School Street.

“It’s going very well,” said Weber on Tuesday as crews from Kacin Companies in Murrysville worked on the framing and wall panels.

Kacin Superintendent Matt Flinn said the next step is to “dry-in” the building – in other words, to secure it from being affected by wet weather.

“Once we get the building secured, we can get our contractors in for things like electrical and HVAC,” Flinn said.

Through a roughly four-year capital campaign, library officials raised a little more than $1 million in grants and community donations that will help fund a new, 4,150-square-foot library with multiple eco-friendly “green” features, including geothermal heating and cooling and solar panels on the south-facing section of the roof.

Below, Weber discusses the geothermal feature.

“We’re expanding the (former borough building) parking lot by about 15 spaces, we’ll have a patio space on the southern side where folks can sit, and the space outside the library is able to be fully utilized,” Weber said.

The library’s Delmont Diggers group will have space to re-establish its butterfly garden, with the added ability to use rain collected from the roof to water the garden’s plants.

The project was delayed a couple of months due to pandemic-related restrictions on construction, but Weber said crews were able to get back to work shortly after Memorial Day.

“We’re excited,” he said.