The Kennett Public Library will be closed from April 6 to 19. Contractors found asbestos during the recent renovation work, and professional remediation is now necessary.

Kennett Library Director Donna Murray expressed her regret that the library will now be closed for 14 days, but said that the health and safety of the library's customers and staff is the top priority.

“For the health and safety of our community and our staff, and to minimize how much more time the library needs to be closed, we will handle this properly and efficiently,” Murray said. “We were originally scheduled to close the library March 23 to 27 for the second phase of renovations. Instead, the affected areas were secured and we remained open. Now we need to close for two weeks in April to complete the remediation and the second phase of renovations.”

Once the renovation and redecoration is finished, customers will see a whole new face for the library. The priority in the makeover is to enhance the customer experience with better areas for reading and programming. Library officials are working on a plan to build a new home.

“We have been trying to move to a new location for more than a decade now,” explained library board president Susan Mackey-Kallis. “This latest issue makes us more determined than ever to build the new facility.”

With the library closing between April 6 and 19, library customers are encouraged to ask the staff about the eBook collection that can be accessed from home.

The library will be holding an information session at 7 p.m. on April 13. The meeting room downstairs will be accessible that night despite the closure. The community is invited to attend the session to hear about the current renovations, and to offer input on the library's future plans.