Southwest Regional Library Funding Relies On Design

Public hearings on the next Louisville city budget begin this week, and the first will be held in the Southwest Government Center. And it's likely the discussion will cover plans for the new southwest regional library.The southwest regional library is a long-planned project. The city owns land for the facility, and Metro Council members who represent southwest neighborhoods are confident the project will be partially funded in the next budget.Councilman David Yates says the cost of the project will largely be determined by the design for the library, which is being put together now."From one degree to the other, it could be very, very different depending on what design we go with. We've also looked at some other funding revenues and ways to be able to get it together. So a lot of that will depend on what our final blueprint will be for the library," he says.But, Yates says the library's design will also depend in part on how much money is available to build it. He says the library will likely be built in phases. He expects Mayor Greg Fischer to allocate some money to begin work on the project this year, with plans for further allocations in the future.