Construction won't close library doors

Bob Walter, dean of learning resources at Pittsburg State University, wants the public to know that Axe Library is still open, despite the construction fence that encircles the library's entrance.
"From the street, people may not realize that they can still come through the front door," Walter said. "They just have to come from the north or south sides instead of up the steps from the street."
The work at Axe Library is part of the deferred maintenance work going on at PSU this summer, according to Paul Stewart, director of facilities planning. At Axe Library, workers are currently removing the brick steps in front of the library, which, Stewart said, have been "heaving and chipping" as a result of the soil underneath freezing and thawing over time. The steps will be replaced with concrete, new handrails will be added and the planters will be repaired.
This is just a part of the project, Stewart said. Workers will also clean and treat the stone and masonry panels that cover the exterior surfaces of the building. They will also do some cleaning and tuckpointing on Heckert-Wells and Yates Halls and on the chemical storage building south of Heckert-Wells Hall.
Stewart said the work should be completed by Aug. 15. In the meantime, Walter said, the library will maintain its regular summer schedule.
"It's a cool, quiet place for both the campus and the wider community to come to check out books, read or do research," Walter said.
Regular summer hours at Axe Library are 7:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Friday and 4-10 p.m. on Sunday. The library is closed on Saturdays through the summer. It will also be closed on July 4. For more information about Axe Library hours and exceptions to the schedule, visit their Web site at http://library.pittstate.edu/other/hours.html or call the library at 620-235-4880.

---Pitt State---