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The Greenbelt Community Center has arranged to extend the stay of the Greenbelt's mini-library until November, when renovations to the main library building are expected to be completed.

The mini-library, which offers a few hundred of the library's full collection of 125,000 items, was originally scheduled to close in June, then extended until mid-September.

Patrons would have had to use other libraries while the renovations were finished, but the popularity of the mini-library led the city to extend its stay.

The Greenbelt Library has been undergoing renovations since May to install energy-efficient lighting, create new study rooms and a re-modeled children's area and service desk. The project is expected to cost about $640,000, said Kathleen Teaze, Prince George's County's library director.

When the renovations conclude, both libraries will close for at least a week to restock the shelves.

"We're very appreciative of the city for extending the use of the space," Teaze said. "Residents of Greenbelt are very heavy library users."

One of the key services the mini-library offers is to allow customers to request books from anywhere in the library system and have them delivered to Greenbelt, meaning residents still have access to the entire collection, Teaze said.

Even in its reduced capacity, the library has had more than 10,000 items checked out every month, and often gets more than 400 items requested from other branches delivered every day, said branch manager Ellen Utley.

"We're glad to continue to be able to give the service to public," Utley said. "It gives [us] a sense of pride to do so much with so little."

The mini-library currently occupies an approximately 130-square-foot space in the community center usually reserved for exhibits from the Greenbelt Museum. A local artist agreed to postpone a scheduled exhibit until next year to keep the library open

"I think it's fantastic," said Greenbelt resident Zach Feris. "I think it's a really important amenity. ... We're over there quite a bit."

Feris, who works mostly from home, said he usually takes out one book a week from the library, and has come to depend on its supply of children's books since his 20-month-old son enjoys when Feris reads to him.

dleaderman@gazette.net