KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Four years after Merriam approved construction of a new $30 million community center, the Johnson County Library unveiled renderings Wednesday for a new library expected to open next door by 2024.
The one-story building will be 15,000 square feet with general and children’s collections, a couple meeting rooms, computer area, and amenities like a drive-thru window for returns and hold pickups.
Johnson County Library
Among the new library’s other features:
- An eco-friendly green roof with prairie grasses;
- A large “front porch” to greet visitors at the entrance;
- “Sculpture-like light monitors” to provide natural light on the roof;
- Window nooks on the east and west sides of the library, replicating “a beloved feature of the existing Antioch Library.
Construction is expected to start early next year with an anticipated opening in roughly two years.
There will be a 3D model of the Merriam Library branch on display May 9-31 at the Antioch Library and beginning June 1 at the Merriam Community Center.
