The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham (CFGB) stopped by Pell City this week to deliver funds it’s been excitedly holding for two years.

On Oct. 13, Pell City representatives accepted a $48,500 grant from the CFGB to assist in renovating the City’s new library. The grant was presented by CFGB representatives including Director of Marketing and Communications Ginger Jefferson, who said the project was selected for the funding for many reasons.

“Firs of all, it’s a fabulous facility,” Jefferson said.

According to the City’s grant application in 2013, the funding was requested to renovate the Program Activity Room at the new library, which will be housed on the ground floor of the City’s Municipal Complex. The Complex, located on U.S. 231 near the Winn-Dixie Shopping center, was purchased from CenturyLink for $1 million, and approximately $2 million has been slated for the 55,000-square-foot building’s renovation.

The program activity room occupies 4,600 square feet of the new 12,000-square-foot library. In the space, residents will enjoy separate reading centers for children and teens and technology learning activities among other features. The City’s grant application lists that CFGB funding would be used for “space reconfiguration, new flooring, furnishings, shelving, cabinetry, paint and general refurbishments.”

The City of Pell City and the Pell City Library Guild are currently raising funds to complete the library’s interior. According to Laurie Regan, Capital Campaign Chair for the Library Guild Board, there remains about $250,000 in content, genealogy, technology and furniture needs for the new facility that the Guild hopes to raise as construction continues. Regan said it’s the first time the Library has undertaken a capital fundraising effort since it refurbished the old post office in the 1970s.

Gift recognition for the new Pell City Public Library begins at $200, and several naming opportunities are available from seating areas at $2,500 to the central circulation desk for $100,000.

Those interested in supporting can do so online by visiting pellcitylibrary.com and clicking the “Library Guild” tab at the top of the page. Donations are also accepted at the library, located next to City Hall on 1st Ave. in Pell City.

The new Pell City Public Library is expected to open in April or May of 2016. For more, contact the library at (205) 884-1015.