Hayner Library Gives Update on New Building Possibility

Our Daily Show Interview! Hayner Library: A Ton of Events Planned for 2026

ALTON - The Hayner Public Library District is considering building a new building. Executive Director Mary Cordes gives an update.

Earlier this year, the library announced that they were considering a new building to better serve the 46,000 community members living in Alton, Godfrey and Foster Township. In a recent interview on “Our Daily Show!” with CJ Nasello, Cordes added that the library will continue to prioritize transparency throughout this process.

“It’s a huge deal,” she said. “We’ve been in the same buildings that we’re currently in since the 1980s, mid-80s, when we opened the mall library when it was a little branch upstairs. So this is a big deal to potentially be making changes to that. We just want to make sure everybody is up to date on that.”

The library has three locations — a branch at Alton Square Mall, a downtown branch, and the Genealogy and Local History Library.

Hayner’s lease with Alton Square Mall will end in 2028. The library pays $20,000 a month plus utilities to rent this space at the mall.

The Downtown Library is “no longer conducive to the ever-changing needs of a public library,” Cordes wrote in the Winter 2026 library newsletter. Similarly, the Genealogy and Local History Library has “outgrown its space.”

Between the three branches and all of the books, DVDs, CDs, magazines and more that they carry, Hayner has between 210–215,000 physical items in their collection at any given time, not to mention the digital resources, databases and free programs they offer as well.

“I kind of wanted people to know, when I was writing this article, exactly what goes into a library building and what goes on on an annual basis as far as circulation,” Cordes shared.

In April 2024, Hayner hired Fred Schlipf to help write Hayner’s comprehensive plan. Among his other accomplishments, Schlipf authored “The Practical Handbook of Library Architecture: Creating Building Spaces That Work,” which is the “definitive resource for library architecture.” With his expertise, he has helped guide Hayner’s Board of Trustees through the process of developing a comprehensive plan.

As part of this, the Board of Trustees “perform[ed] their due diligence in considering all facility options.” This includes the possibility of constructing a new building.

The new building would combine all materials and staff members from the Alton Square Mall library and Downtown Library branches. The Genealogy and Local History Library’s lower level currently houses the library’s administrative offices; these offices would move to the new building, freeing up space at the Genealogy and Local History Library.

In the past few months, the Board of Trustees has voted to hire an architectural or design-build firm, which will help Hayner identify building sites, create architectural renderings, determine the cost, and more.

Cordes and Board President Kevin Botterbush emphasized that the construction of a new facility is not “imminent,” but simply one of the ideas that the library is considering.

“The Board will not make such a decision until it is confident that it is in the best interest of the taxpayers of the District,” Cordes wrote. “Transparency is also paramount to the Board as it moves forward…The Board will also begin to seek input from community stakeholders in the future.”

She emphasized that the library is a community resource, offering a lot to community members who utilize its programs. More information about the library’s plans will be shared as it becomes available. But Cordes encourages anyone who has questions to simply reach out or read the Winter 2026 newsletter.

“We wanted to make sure we’re as transparent as possible and put that in there for anybody who might not have seen it,” she added. “It might be, towards the end of March, a little more out-of-date because we’re going to keep moving forward with this project the best we can, so some things will change. But people can always check out website for information or just call the library and ask for information too if you’re interested in knowing what’s going on.”

You can check out the library’s Winter 2026 newsletter for more information about the library’s plans and winter programming. Visit the Hayner Public Library District’s official website at HaynerLibrary.org.

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