A library is a beautiful thing. A library
in the middle of a scenic nature preserve is
spectacular. The county’s Deltona Regional
Library, part of environmentally rich Lyonia
Preserve, is a source of great pride in Volusia
County, and it is about to get even better.
“Libraries are about education and
community,” said Lucinda Colee, Volusia
county’s library director. “So it is fitting that
Volusia County Government is in
partnership with the Volusia County School
Board and the City of Deltona with regard to
the Deltona Library and ambitious
expansion plans.”
This partnership will result in the
expansion of Deltona Library from 25,000
square feet to a 50,000-square-foot complex
that will include an environmental learning
center and a 1,000-seat amphitheater nestled
in the beautiful natural surroundings of
Lyonia Preserve.
The county subleases 10 acres in Lyonia
Preserve, a unique educational asset the
Volusia County School Board leases from the
state. The proposed Lyonia Preserve
Environmental Learning Center will provide
visitors with unique insight into Volusia
County’s fragile ecosystems. The center will
promote an understanding of our natural
environment, its heritage and challenges.
The environmental learning center will
include classrooms and a laboratory. The
expanded library will have additional
meeting room space, a coffee and gift shop,
enlarged computer areas, more children’s
space and a teen area. The Deltona Regional Library is near Galaxy
Middle School, so
teens are frequent visitors to the library. The
library also is within walking distance of
Timbercrest Elementary School.
Most of the funding for the estimated
$16.5 million project comes from the county’s
library fund with some money coming from
the general fund for the construction of the
environmental learning center. The project
got a boost from a $500,000 grant from the
state. Other grants include two $500,000
grants from Volusia County’s ECHO
program for an amphitheater and the
environmental learning center that will be
managed by the Volusia County’s
Environmental Management Division.
The amphitheater is a Deltona-Volusia
County partnership, according to Colee, a 19-year library employee. She said the county’s
original plans called for a 300-seat outdoor
theater. However, the city was planning its
own amphitheater, so the two governments
pooled their visions and resources to create
a 1,000-seat amphitheater. It will include 700
shaded seats and lawn seating to
accommodate another 300 people. The city
is investing $2 million for construction of the
amphitheater and $250,000 annually for 10
years for operation and maintenance. The
amphitheater will have its own concession
building and restrooms so it can host events
when the library is closed. The city will be
naming the facility in cooperation with
Volusia County government.
Library officials will be applying for
LEED certification (Leadership in Energy
and Environmental Design) for this project
from the U.S. Green Building Council. This
nationally recognized program verifies that a
building is environmentally responsible,
profitable and a healthy place to work.
Volusia County library system includes
16 public libraries. It offers a free library card
to all Volusia County residents, which is
valid at all branches of the public library.
Architect’s rendering of what the expanded Deltona Library will look
like.
