NEW BRANCH PLANNED — This building will soon become the Bergholz branch of the Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County, officials announced Wednesday. -- Contributed

BERGHOLZ — The village will be the home of a new branch of the Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County, officials announced Wednesday.

The Bergholz library branch will be located at 270 2nd St. and is expected to open next summer. The building sits near the Bergholz Museum, the Bergholz Community Foundation office and the garage where the police department houses its cruisers.

The building that will become a library was once a restaurant that burned down and construction to rebuild it was never finished. Now, the foundation is funding reconstruction of the inside to make way for the library to transform it into a place for reading and lifelong learning.

It’s a project that has been in the works for the last nine months or so, according to Amy Richards, president of the foundation, and Mike Gray, executive director of the library system.

“Two years ago, the Bergholz Community Foundation received a large bequest from a lifelong resident of Bergholz,” Richards explained. “The trustees agreed that the income from this gift would be used strictly to fund projects that would directly impact the village of Bergholz. We were looking for a project that would make a difference in the lives of the residents and improve the village. Beth Ruppert Warren of the Jefferson County Resource Network introduced the foundation to Gray, and the wheels began turning.”

Gray said trustees of the library board are excited to be able to create a new branch to serve Bergholz residents and the surrounding area.

“The new library addition allows us to further provide the people of Jefferson County with books, story times and a connection to digital resources,” Gray said. “The library plans to include shelving to showcase local history information that community members can contribute to.”

The foundation has partnered with the village to help provide the funding necessary, through grant opportunities, to make the $1.6 million revitalization project possible. In addition to a library, other areas of improvement will include a health and resource center, an outdoor courtyard, greenspace in neighboring lots, a community hotspot center and more.

The foundation is sponsoring a community celebration to kick off the new library and its projects from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sept. 11 on 2nd Street with food trucks, music and inflatables for children. The library’s bookmobile will be at the event to offer registration for library cards. All are welcome to attend.

The Bergholz branch will join a system that includes the main library on Fourth Street in Steubenville and branches in Adena, Brilliant, Dillonvale-Mount Pleasant, the Schiappa Branch in Steubenville’s West End, Tiltonsville and Toronto, as well as bookmobile services.