Don't miss Director Amelia Shelley's updates on all of our building projects.

Jump to:
Steel ~ Concrete ~ Foundation Work
Groundbreaking ~ Demolition ~ The Roosevelt Window

Steel

Upon the completion of concrete work on the library building, a giant crane was brought in to move steel. Steel work has progressed rapidly and the shell of a building is finally taking shape! These photographs of steel work were taken in early March 2010. Crews are also building the forms for the poured-on-site walls of the parking structure.

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Concrete

Once foundation work was completed, crews worked to prepare for the pouring of concrete. Despite sub-freezing temperatures and lots of snow that just wouldn't melt, crews quickly poured the building slab and two elevator towers. These photographs were taken in mid-January 2010. Concrete work continues on the parking structure.

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Foundation

Just weeks after the groundbreaking ceremony, site work was in full swing! Crews were hard at work with utilities and the foundations for the library and parking structure. These pictures, taken in late November 2009, show the giant piles of fill dirt and a big hole in the ground where the branch library will eventually stand next to City Hall.

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Groundbreaking

We celebrated the official groundbreaking of our Rifle building project on October 22, 2009! The Rifle High School Choir Ensemble kicked off the ceremony with a beautiful a capella arrangement of the national anthem. The ceremony included comments from Garfield County Commissioner Tresi Houpt, Rifle Mayor Keith Lambert, Library Board President Nella Barker, Architect Bruce Flynn, and Library District Executive Director Amelia Shelley. Then it was on to the shiny shovels! Since storytime coincided with the ceremony, children were invited to grab their own little shovels and hardhats and help break some ground. Afterward, everyone enjoyed refreshments and a construction-themed storytime at City Hall.

Rifle Mayor Keith Lambert addresses the crowd at the groundbreaking ceremony, with Executive Director Amelia Shelley and County Commissioner Tresi Houpt in the background.

Library Board Treasurer Lanny Kroh, Board President Nella Barker, Director Amelia Shelley, and Board Member Michael Weerts.
Back row: Rifle Branch Manager Judy Martens

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Demolition

The former Rifle Branch Library was demolished on October 16, 2009, to make way for our new branch library as well as a two-story parking structure and a civic plaza.

The demolition team starts to tear into the old branch library.

A major steel support beam is brought down.

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The Roosevelt Window

In 1905, the Rifle Christian Church commissioned a stained glass window for $105 to commemorate President Teddy Roosevelt's visit to the area. The window was dedicated in 1906 and was dubbed the Roosevelt Window. When the church was torn down, all of the church's stained glass windows went into private ownership.

In 1980, the private owner offered the stained glass windows for sale. A citizen group called Heritage Windows quickly formed and raised $35,000 to purchase the windows. Heritage Windows' intent was to preserve the windows as local historical artifacts while enabling citizens to enjoy the artwork and learn about local history. The window was installed in the new Rifle Branch Library which opened in 1984.

The Roosevelt Window was safely removed, panel by panel, from the former Rifle Branch Library in September 2009. The window was shipped to Arizona where it has been painstakingly restored by Associated Crafts, a company specializing in stained glass restoration and preservation. You can see pictures of the window being removed on Associated Craft's Facebook page and on their Flickr stream. The restored window will be installed in the new Rifle Branch Library before it opens in autumn 2010.

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