Castro Valley Library

The Castro Valley Library is one of ten branches of the Alameda County Library system serving approximately 60,000 residents in the unincorporated area of Castro Valley, California.

History

The original Castro Valley library was first opened in 1927 on Castro Valley Blvd, in a water tank owned by the Booth family. The current building, at 20055 Redwood Road, was designed by architects Wahamaki and Corey. It opened in 1962 with a collection of over 23,000 and a cost of $230,000. The current collection is approximately 100,000. A new replacement library is expected to open in 2009 at 3600 Norbridge Ave (artist’s rendering below). The new library has been funded by a combination of State Bond (13.9 million) and public support for a total cost of $22,276,464. The Architect for the project is Noll and Tam [http://www.nollandtam.com] , Berkeley, CA. The contractor for the new building is W.A. Thomas, Inc. (Russell Stains, President). A ground breaking ceremony will be held April 18, 2008.

New Facility

The new Castro Valley Library will include the following features:
* A 50% larger collection space
* 3 times the Audio Visual Collection
* An International Language collection 5 times larger
* 5 times as many public computers, wireless Internet access
* Multipurpose Education Center and Community Meeting Room
* Café and Bookstore
* Outdoor Patio and Playground

[http://www.aclibrary.org/branches/csv/graphics/csvnewlibrary.gif| Architect's Rendition]

ervices and Programs

Children Services

Children Services at the Castro Valley Library include books, magazines, CDs, CD-Rom software, and books on tape for all ages of children. A pre-school storytime for 3-5 year olds is also offered during the Fall, Winter, and Spring. Registration is required.In the Summer the library hosts a reading game for children and weekly family programs.

Homework Help

* Homework assistance is available for school-aged children Monday through Thursday 3:30-5:00 p.m.
* LiveHomeworkHelp has tutors to chat with you every day 1 p.m. – 10 p.m. and in Spanish 1 p.m. – 7 p.m. http://www.aclibrary.org Click on ASK US!

Legal Advice

Once a month, an Attorney is available by appointment for free consultation. This program is sponsored by the Library and the Alameda County Bar Association.

Other

Castro Valley Library offers the following services:

LINK + book request service. This service allows patrons to borrow a book from other participating libraries if it is not available within the Alameda County Library system
* Computer Tutoring
* Book Club and Book SalesPlease see the Castro Valley Library’s website for a calendar of programs and events. http://www.aclibrary.org/branches/csv

Resources

*Alameda County Library Website http://www.aclibrary.org/
*Castro Valley Library blog http://csvlib.wordpress.com
*My Castro Valley website http://www.mycastrovalley.com/history
*The Morning News, 2/13/67