Construction on the Goleta Valley Library renovation project is set to wrap up in roughly a year, officials confirmed.
“We are so pleased to share that we are on track for that June 2027 completion date,” Elizabeth Saucedo, city librarian, said.
Saucedo shared project and capital campaign fundraiser updates with Goleta’s Library Advisory Commission earlier this week.
The Goleta Valley Library closed its main location at 500 N. Fairview Ave. in April 2025 after it received a $4.2 million grant to modernize the library and bring it up to code.
The library is now operating out of 6500 Hollister Ave., Suite 105, while the main location undergoes construction.
Currently, the main facility is undergoing utility preparation work. Contractors are installing new plumbing, completing structural work and performing the exterior compaction and grading, according to Saucedo.
“We are very excited for all the entryways and the path of travel throughout the outside of the buildings to be ADA compliant,” she said.
The construction project also allowed the library to renovate the interior, since everything inside had to be moved to a temporary location on Hollister Avenue.
However, because the grant money does not cover any interior renovations, the library and city staff launched a capital campaign fundraiser in February, Saucedo said.
Under the current proposal, the interior renovation will include private study pods, upgraded shelving and updated children, teen and common areas.
As of Monday, the library’s fundraising campaign has reached 52% of its $1.7 million goal, according to Saucedo.
Saucedo said the John C. Mithun Foundation agreed to fund the library’s new teen and children area with a $550,000 donation. She recommended naming those after the foundation, which the commission unanimously approved.
“It really is a milestone donation that will make so much possible, not only for the project, but for the community,” Saucedo said.
The John C. Mithun Imagination Library, the Discovery Den and Library of Wonders were thrown out as possible names by Saucedo.
There are “a lot of very creative ways to incorporate this naming opportunity for the children’s side of the library,” she said.
Given the commission’s approval, library and foundation staff will finalize a naming recommendation with the foundation before bringing it to the Goleta City Council.
Commissioner Sarah Penna questioned what granting naming rights might look like in the future, and if the rights are contingent on a certain amount.
“That question has kept both Ms. Saucedo and I awake at night,” said JoAnne Plummer, Goleta Neighborhood Services director. “But it is not every day that somebody’s knocking on your door and handing you a $550,000 check.”
Plummer said offering naming rights is not something that is typically done. She said the staff doesn’t take that decision lightly, but the $550,000 is what brought forth the naming recommendation.
She added that naming rights could be discussed if an individual or an organization donates an amount in a range similar to the foundation’s.
A $100,000 donation “would not get that same recommendation from us,” Plummer said.
This is the only naming request staff is currently bringing forward for the library.
