After 58 years of service at the Accomac location, the Eastern Shore Public Library’s collection and staff will be moving to the Eastern Shore of Virginia Regional Library and Heritage Center on Bennett Street in Parksley later this summer, according to Joyce Holland, chairwoman of the library board of trustees.
“We look forward to beginning the actual move in early August,” said Holland. “We share the community’s excitement about the facility’s long-awaited opening.”
While planning for the move has been ongoing, there is still much work to be done before the library opens the doors of its new home.
The library will be closed for about three weeks in order to move the library collections and staff to the new facility.
“It’s a big job,” said Miranda Wisor, library system director, “and all steps in the process must be planned very carefully.”
The Front Street building in Accomac will be closed to the public beginning Aug. 7.
Due dates for borrowed materials will be extended to accommodate the planned reopening in Parksley on Aug. 26.
Library patrons can still return borrowed items to the outdoor book drop in Accomac until Aug. 26.
The regional library will house the new Heritage Center, which boasts historical and genealogical records from the Eastern Shore dating back hundreds of years.
Also, the new facility will offer enhanced program spaces, study spaces, and new technologies.
“Libraries need to grow and change with their community and this building will offer that opportunity, which is so important,” said Wisor.
