ALAIEDON TWP. — There’s room to pull drawers, lay out maps, find more than one family member in old yearbooks and even gather in groups at the new Local History Center in Okemos that features the Capital Area District Libraries’ history collections.
CADL purchased a 19,000-square-foot building in September at 2175 University Park Drive for $1.6 million to better preserve and house its invaluable memorabilia.
Open spaces, potential to expand and grow, more ability to control the temperature and humidity levels and plenty of parking just minutes from Interstate 96 were just some of the assets CADL officials liked after more than 50 years of storing vital keepsakes in the downtown Lansing branch’s basement and multiple other places in the building.
“Our two main goals for this space was preservation and access for preservation,” said Jenny Marr, CADL’s executive director while providing a tour of the new facility in Okemos. “The downtown building is a steam-heated building, which means we couldn’t control the temperature or the humidity which are the enemies of historical documents. We really needed a place where we could control the environment.
“Really, we have so many opportunities that we did not have before. We’re really excited to just make the best use of this space.”
Open house planned
CADL officials are preparing for an open house and ribbon cutting from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 19, at the library system’s new Local History Center, which will officially open with regular hours on June 1.
For now, history buffs needing to digitize materials, look up real estate records to build a new porch on their aging home or feed their curiosity can call to make appointments at CADL’s latest and 14th location.
Local History Specialist Heidi Butler and a few other employees will be there for any questions patrons may have.
Butler said the collection has gained thousands of additional square feet of space because of the relocation that has required both personal transport of precious items like glass plate negatives and official movers.
She pointed to a humidity and temperature monitor on the wall.
“I got one of those when I started at CADL 12 years ago. It was bad news right away,” she said, saying the downtown building has temperatures of mid- to upper-70s, higher than the recommended levels by about 10 degrees, along with wildly ranging humidity levels. “If there hadn’t been discussions about moving out already, I kind of was like, ‘Listen, this is not good for these collections. It’s one thing if it’s consistent. That’s good. When it goes up and down like that, it’s very hard on the collections. Out here, I think we’re going to be able to be more consistent.”
Marr said CADL’s new Local History Center was a dream long before she took CADL’s reins.
“We’ve been thinking about it for years,” she said. “It’s been kind of a dream for a long time. I’ve been at CADL for two years now and pretty much after I came in, I inherited the dream and was working to try to make it a reality.”
CADL purchased the building that used to be NexTech High School because it required little renovations and had come up for auction. The $1.6 million price was below market value for that area.
“It was an opportunity that we took advantage of,” Marr said.
More downtown branch changes could be made
In October 2024, Lansing officials including Mayor Andy Schor, said they were opposed to the Capital Area District Library no longer having a downtown branch, when Marr announced the library was considering a move out of the 401 S. Capitol Ave. location.
Marr said at the time that keeping the current building would require substantial investment, and a major renovation hadn’t happened because the library system handled most maintenance costs but would not be willing to invest in a building it leased from the Lansing School District.
She said CADL and Lansing officials continue to discuss the importance of keeping a downtown branch, but Marr said the present building is beyond repair considering old infrastructure that includes cast-iron pipes and steam heat.
She’s expecting more serious discussions about keeping a downtown branch this year, “coming up soon.”
Bill Castanier, president of the Historical Society of Greater Lansing, said CADL certainly needs better space for its collections.
“You shouldn’t ever have storage in a basement,” he said. “I hate to say it, but parking is probably going to be easier.”
Contact editor Susan Vela at svela@lsj.com or 248-873-7044. Follow her on Twitter @susanvela.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: CADL’s new $1.6M Local History Center set to open in Alaiedon Township
Reporting by Susan Vela, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
