Question of the Day: Can staff parking be moved further away so there are more spaces closer to the building for patrons?

This question is more to do with today's configuration than the expansion plan, but I wanted to address it here. Today, the Library only owns the "little lot" up to the hedge to the north of the library. The larger parking lot just to the north of it is owned by the Village of Plainfield. Eleven spaces, or about 1/3 of the Library-owned lot is designated for the 55 staff members of the Library. Because there is no loading dock or service entrance, the staff entrance on the north side of the building and the spaces near it, are the loading area for Library use.

In the expansion, a loading dock and service entrance would be added, removing this from the main parking area. Also, the staff entrance for the downtown Library will be on the Illlinois Street side of the building, while the main patron entrance would face Route 59 and the expanded Route 59 lot. The Library is contracted to purchase the Route 59 parking lot from the Village in 2010, which would allow for the creation of staff spaces in that lot.