Norman Central Library closes indefinitely due to mold, city faces high repair costs
NORMAN, OKLA. (KOKH) — A brand new library in Norman that opened almost five years ago is now closed indefinitely after mold was found in multiple parts of the building.
A FOX 25 investigation found the fix is taking more time, and more of your tax dollars than the city has available right now.
Norman's Central Library opened to the public in November of 2019.
The 80,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility was the crown jewel of libraries and the largest project of the 2015 Norman Forward sales tax initiative.
Four years later, the $39 million library sits empty, closed because of health hazards, and now the city is desperately trying to find a way to reopen.
The Central Library was the topic of conversation at the latest Norman Finance Committee meeting.
City leaders forced to take legal action to get the problems fixed.
Outside council was hired to solve a multitude of issues.
The city announced in November of last year the building would close for four days after workers discovered mold, some of it black mold.
However, those four days turned into five months.
Then on March 27, the city announced it had paid a half million dollars in remediation costs out of the city's emergency fund.
By April, the damage was so severe the city announced an indefinite closure of the library.
FOX 25 submitted an open records request to get an idea of the extent of the problem, and what we found was surprising.
Hundreds of work orders, work logs, and invoices for issues and repairs at the new library, which started just weeks after it opened.
One of the documents refers to repairs made to four roof leaks described as a "persistent issue since shortly after construction."
Another refers to other leaks in windows that were "never properly caulked."
Then in December of 2022, another work order involving another new leak at the library.
So far, the city said it has spent close to $1 million for repairs.
Now, Finance Committee leaders aren't sure that they can continue at this pace without a settlement or results in court, and legal action comes at a high price.
According to estimates, the city could be paying anywhere from $109,000 to $200,000 of your tax dollars for legal help.
We did reach out to the City of Norman.
They denied our request for an interview because it's now a legal matter.
The City of Norman is posting regular updates on the status of the public library.
You can find the latest updates here.
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