The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Library Advisory Board has raised $925,000 in pledges from state, city and county officials to replace the Main Library’s 50-year-old heating and cooling system, bypassing traditional district boundaries. The board still needs $1.6 million to reach its $2.5 million goal.
The 100,000-square-foot downtown library relies on a 1975 “air handler” system that leaves some rooms freezing while others swelter. Board Chair Janet Saiers said she recently sat in a meeting in a very cold room because the thermostat wasn’t responding.
“The 50-year-old downtown Main Library is important to every person in Bernalillo County,” Saiers said. “We want it to be open six days a week to serve them.”…