One possible design for the exterior of the city’s new library is shown in this schematic. (Image: Richärd Kennedy Architects)
The new Palm Desert Library will open in late 2028 — several months later than planned — after the contractor hired to build it submitted a cost estimate nearly double the project's $25 million design-build budget, the Library Advisory Committee learned Monday.
Tilden Coil Constructors, hired under a progressive design-build contract, submitted a cost validation report estimating nearly $50 million to complete its scope of work.
A city capital projects official told the committee the gap stemmed from fundamental differences in how Tilden Coil and the project's architect, Richärd Kennedy Architects, approached key design elements.
He cited the library's signature palm grove-style shade structure as one example: Tilden Coil treated it as a fully custom-fabricated assembly, while the architect's design called for a two-piece steel system that relies on natural deflection to achieve its curved form — a difference that alone accounted for a variance of between $1.5 million and nearly $7 million on that single item.
The city is bringing an amendment to Tilden Coil's contract before the Palm Desert City Council on Thursday that would conclude the firm's progressive design-build services, with demolition of the Park View building targeted to begin April 6.
The city will then release a new request for proposals, modifying the evaluation process to require shortlisted firms to submit a design validation report before any contract is executed and eliminating a self-performance requirement that had limited respondents in the original procurement.
The $30 million overall project budget remains unchanged, and the city is currently leasing its library space from College of the Desert under a five-year agreement through July 2029.
The committee also received an encouraging usage report, with Library Director of Services Shannon Vonnegut saying the library recorded 80,932 visitors from July through February, compared with 67,927 during the same period the prior year.
Physical circulation reached 143,048, up from 107,969, while digital circulation climbed to 15,944 from 9,500.
A rendering of what the interior of the city’s new library might look like. (Image: Richärd Kennedy Architects)
Vonnegut attributed the gains in part to a major book vendor serving most other valley libraries shutting down earlier this year, leaving Palm Desert as one of the few libraries in the region still receiving new materials.
She also noted that the Palm Springs library is operating out of a temporary location at limited capacity while its main building undergoes renovation.
The library is also on the verge of cutting ties with Riverside County's internet service and switching to its own account on CENIC, a high-speed network serving colleges, universities and libraries.
"It's literally one of the first projects I took on when I started working here," Vonnegut said of the nearly two-and-a-half-year effort.
She said the equipment is installed, the library has received a green light, and the switchover is expected within days — after which staff will be able to control and increase internet speeds, something not possible under the county connection.
Library Manager for Community Partnerships and Engagement Jose Garcia presented an analysis of a proposed "Adulting 101" free program series that would offer young adults instruction in financial management, career skills, health and wellness, life organization, and soft skills.
The library is already in contact with financial institutions and credit unions interested in providing budgeting programs and is exploring partnerships with College of the Desert and the Riverside Workforce Development Center, with staff also seeking grant funding to support hiring a program coordinator.
The library will launch a search this summer for a new Poet Laureate after the term of Lori Davis, appointed in 2023, comes to an end.
Davis has facilitated twice-monthly poetry workshops throughout her tenure, and the new laureate is expected to be appointed in October.
Library staff are seeking two advisory committee members to participate in the review and nomination process, which requires approximately 15 hours of commitment.
On the programming front, the library will join "One Book, One Coast" in May for Asian Pacific Island Heritage Month, with libraries reading George Takei's They Called Us Enemy in English and Spanish.
Pre-registration for the "Summer Reading Cup" — themed around the Men's FIFA World Cup — opens June 1 and will feature weekly performances, crafts, prizes, and end-of-summer parties.
A $12,000 state Zip Books grant launched in January has funded more than 320 books shipped directly to patrons' homes, and the library is also piloting home delivery to The Carlotta, a residential living facility.