What makes a great building?
There are many factors. The first is community support. The Douglas Public Library District got that support in 1996, when the citizens of Douglas County voted to support a mill levy increase. Since then, that increase has funded library building projects all over the county, and there are more to follow.
Now, in the year 2000, we are almost ready to open the first public building in the heart of a new downtown, the 42,000 square foot Highlands Ranch library.
Mark it on your calendars today: the Grand Opening is July 15, 2000.
A great building also needs great architects. We found them -- Humphries Poli.
A great building needs great builders. We are very proud of the extraordinary craftsmanship that has gone into our library. Our contractor has been Saunders, and their altogether impressive project superintendent has been Ed Diefendorf.
Finally, a great building needs ... community support. Our new library will open with just exactly what we could afford -- all the necessities. But with private donations, we can offer far more than that. We can offer a building that has the fingerprints of its community all over it, a civic structure that truly belongs to its place and its people, that has touches of art and ambiance the library budget couldn't cover by itself.
Just last week, our Douglas Public Library Foundation mailed out over 700 Highlands Ranch gift catalogs to area businesses.
We have also placed this catalog on line. You'll find it at douglas.lib.co.us/giftcatalog/giftcatalog.html -- it's also a link from the library's main page. The catalog lists a range of library amenities, from the very expensive to the truly affordable.
For instance, just $500,000 will give you the opportunity to name the library. At the other end, $150 will buy you, your family, or your business, a special book spine that will be part of a permanent donor wall. In between are a number of other items: a $12,000 fireplace, donated by the Friends of the Highlands Ranch Library; a small group study room, which has sparked the interest of several area businesses; an outdoor flag and flagpole, currently being considered by a local civic group.
Carefully consider the items in this catalogue (the catalogue design itself is a donation from David Starck, a talented artist who happens to live in Highlands Ranch) and decide which would most matter to you in the signature building of the new downtown. Then, if you are able, make a tax deductible donation to our 501(c)3 Douglas Public Library Foundation.
Why? Because we're not just building a library. We're building a community. Shouldn't you be a part of it?
Note: Depending on the size of contribution, all donors will be recognized with naming rights and/or donation plaques on or near the item. Donors may also be listed in our Donor Book and on the Donor Wall at the library, on the Douglas Public Library District web site (http://douglas.lib.co.us), and in our Highlands Ranch Library Newsletter. All donors will be invited to a special gala "sneak preview" of the new Highlands Ranch Library.
All donations made to the Douglas Public Library Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, are tax deductible.
More information can be found at our website, or by calling Laurie Anderson, of Anderson and Associates, at 303-758-1118.
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