Pioneer Library System and city officials are searching for a storage facility for the 167,000 items sitting unused inside Norman Public Library Central, which closed in 2023 due to mold.
Lisa Wells, Pioneer Library System executive director, told OU Daily while the books are in the building they cannot be in Pioneer’s circulation system. Wells said a storage facility would not be a functioning, public-facing library but would allow books to be in Pioneer's digital catalog and available for courier service.
According to Wells, all books in Norman Public Library Central will be cleaned before they are rented out again. The only books actually damaged by mold were in a book return, Wells said, and those have been discarded.
“The public should have no concern that they have mold on them that then would be brought to their home should they check it out,” Wells said.
Pioneer Library System has agreed to hire Randy Thomas, an independent contractor who helps libraries move, to relocate the collection. Pioneer previously worked with Thomas to help move the collection to the central library when it originally opened, Wells said at the board of trustees’ meeting on Jan. 28.
Tiffany Vrska, the city’s chief communications officer, said the Parks and Recreation Department has been working with Pioneer to determine a place to store the books. Wells said Pioneer and the city considered multiple properties, and Pioneer staff submitted a lease application for a property they found.
Jason Olsen, director of the Parks and Recreation Department, wrote in an email provided to OU Daily by Vrska that the city suggested a suitable storage space with rent below current market rates, but Pioneer rejected it and other sites suggested by the city. The property Pioneer submitted a proposal for instead would cost the city $50,000 more per year.
Kelly Sitzman, Pioneer’s director of communications, said she did not know the specifics of the locations that Pioneer rejected, only that they did not meet their needs. Pioneer wants a facility that is close to their administrative building and processing service center, and that is “forward thinking” and in line with their mission, she said.
On Thursday, Sitzman told OU Daily the request for proposal, which was issued and approved in the fall, has lapsed. If Pioneer wanted to continue to move forward with the property they chose, they would have to work with the city to get a new request for proposal issued, Sitzman said.
In an email to OU Daily, Vrska wrote that Pioneer was advised by the city that the request for proposal was not necessary because the city would abide by its own purchasing policies agreements. Vrska said the city still intended to work with Pioneer should an appropriate facility be identified.
“We’re excited to see this move forward in some way. … It can take a long time, so looking at working together and communicating efficiently and quickly to be nimble and move things forward,” Sitzman said.
Wells told OU Daily she wants to see the city move forward with a location for the book collection and hear confirmation on their ongoing lawsuit against the library building’s contractors for mold mishandling.
Vrska said the city will continue to work with Pioneer to find a suitable facility that both parties agree on.
“We've kept the lines of communication open since this situation has continued to evolve,” Vrska said. “We value and cherish our relationship with them.”
Wells said it’s up to the city to decide if a new central Norman library location could open.
“I can’t go anywhere in Norman and do anything that somebody doesn’t say, ‘We sure do wish that central library was open,’” Wells said. “And I say, ‘We sure do too!’”
History of Norman Public Library Central
In November 2023, a few years after Norman Public Library Central’s grand opening in 2019, the city hired Cavins Group to investigate water leak issues from Norman Public Library Central’s roof. Cavins Group discovered traces of mold, including black mold and fusarium, on each level of the facility.
Later that month, Wells announced the Norman Public Library Central would be closed for five months while Cavins Group assessed the facility. In February 2024, Pioneer opened a pop-up location at 121 S. Santa Fe Ave., which houses limited services from Norman Public Library Central.
The Norman Public Library Central was closed indefinitely in April 2024 after more mold was found. A city update blamed recent rain.
“Damage is extensive and severe in nature,” the update read.
A September mold inspection conducted by the Cavins Group found Paecilomyces spores in the building. Paecilomyces is a fungus that can cause severe human infections. The group recommended a professional mold remediation company should be hired to address the mold growth.
That same month, KFOR discovered a 2018 report that showed mold was detected in the building during construction, before the opening of the library.
In January, another report found toxic mold continuing to grow in the building.
This story was edited by Ana Barboza and Anusha Fathepure. Tori Pham and Mary Ann Livingood copy edited this story.
