REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. - Since the 1920s, the Rehoboth Beach Public Library has dispensed books and knowledge from downtown. But 100 years later, the library will be starting a new chapter outside city limits. The idea did not generate immediate or unanimous support.
"It's beautiful, look at it. it was such a treasure when they built it and suddenly it's not a treasure anymore," said library patron Doris Lehman.
"It's quite a shock to us and some of the commissioners expressed quite a shock," said Rehoboth Beach Mayor Stan Mills.
According to the library's board of directors, a survey conducted in 2019 revealed 90 percent of library users lived more than two miles from the downtown location. That information, combined with parking and space constraints, made a new location an attractive option.
"We discovered if we made improvements to this building because they need to be done, it's basically 20 years old, that we would still have problems, that a lot of people wouldn't come because of traffic congestion in the summer, lack of available free parking, and limited program space," said Tom Wontorek, Rehoboth Beach Library Board of Trustees president.
When the library eventually moves, library officials said they plan to keep a satellite branch downtown. Library officials said a new capital campaign will launch for both sites and will be combined with available state and federal funding sources.
Wontorek said the next step will be finding a suitable property for the new library which could be built as early as 2025 or 2026.