Contributed OPEN HOUSE SET — An open house for the Bergholz branch of the Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County will be held after the village's Fourth of July ceremony. Located at 270 2nd St., the branch will officially open at 11 a.m. July 20, officials said.

BERGHOLZ — One community’s Fourth of July Celebration will include the chance to get an early look at a new facility.

When the Independence Day presentation in Bergholz ends, residents will have the chance to tour the newest branch of the Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County.

An open house will be held until 4 p.m. at the Bergholz facility, which is located at 270 2nd St., library officials said Wednesday.

“We’re excited to open the doors of our new library branch during the community event for residents to get a first look and fully embrace the services we will be offering,” said Mike Gray, director of the library system.

The decision to open the branch was announced in September by the library and the Bergholz Community Foundation.

President Amy Richards said at the time that the foundation had partnered with the village to provide funding through grant opportunities to make the $1.6 million project a reality. Other areas of improvement will include a health and resource center, an outdoor courtyard, green space in neighboring lots and a community hotspot center.

With the open house a little more than a week away and the official opening a little less than a month away, Richards says it will be a great addition to the community.

“The Bergholz Community Foundation has been anticipating the opening of the new library for a little more than a year now, and it’s finally a reality,” she said Wednesday.

“Having a library like this in Bergholz is a wonderful opportunity, and we are excited to see how it will enhance the lives of the residents of Bergholz and the surrounding area,” Richards added.

She explained in September that the foundation had received a large bequest from a lifelong resident, and trustees decided that the income from that donation will be used to fund projects that directly impacted the village. That’s when they settled on the library branch.

Located near the Bergholz Museum, the foundation office and the garage where the police department keeps its cruisers, the building that will house the branch was once a restaurant that had been extensively damaged in a fire. An attempt to rebuild the structure was never completed.

That opened the door for the foundation to fund the reconstruction of the inside and make it a library branch.

Activities in the village on the Fourth of July will begin with a parade at 11 a.m. That will be followed by a gathering at the community gazebo on 2nd Street. The ceremony will include the singing of the “Star-Spangled Banner” with VFW Post 232 and Chelsea Householder; the Pledge of Allegiance; prayer with Dave Miller; and remarks from Mayor Gary Griffith and Richards.

The library open house will follow.

Library officials said the branch is scheduled to officially open at 11 a.m. July 20. After that, operating hours will be from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. The branch will be closed on Wednesdays and Sundays.

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.