History of Acton/Agua Dulce Library
On September 29, 2010 the Acton/Agua Dulce Christopher Colombo Brevidoro Library opened its doors to the community. It was a project ten years in the making, with no small part played by the Friends of Acton-Agua Dulce Library in cooperation with Los Angeles County and the taxpayers of California.
In March of 2000, a small group of like-minded individuals created a non-profit, tax-exempt corporation called Friends of Acton/Agua Dulce Library for the purpose of helping to support the establishment and maintenance of a local branch of the Los Angeles County Public Library. It was perhaps the only Friends group operating without a public library to support, but never without hope. Within a year or two, it was joined by others who helped build the organization.
The passage of Proposition 14 (the California Reading and Literacy Improvement and Public Library Construction and Renovation Bond Act of 2000) provided an opportunity that eventually led to a library for Acton - Agua Dulce. Pursuant to the availability of this funding mechanism, Friends of the Library acted as a liaison between the County and local organizations. Representatives of both Acton and Agua Dulce Town Councils, Women’s Clubs, Chambers of Commerce and Civic Associations, the Acton Community Club, the School District, and of course, Friends of Acton-Agua Dulce Library, met with Los Angeles County Librarian Margaret Donnellan Todd and Supervisor Michael Antonovich’s staff. The group learned that Supervisor Antonovich had identified Acton-Agua Dulce as a project for Proposition 14 funding.
The highly competitive process of applying for Prop. 14 money began. Tetra Designs was hired to create the necessary planning and design documents for the application. With local participation, Consultant Gloria Novak, hired by Tetra Designs, researched and formulated the grant application based on community demographics, 20-year need projections, a joint use agreement between the School District and the County, and a donation of land by the Brevidoro Family. Community meetings were held and information was gathered for the application. All of the needed research and development spanned a course of nearly two years before the County was ready to submit the application, in January 2004, for a 10,000 square foot library on a 1.5 acre site on the east side of North Crown Valley Road about one-quarter mile north of Sierra Highway.
Much to the pleasure of those who worked so hard and so long on this project, the California Public Library Construction and Renovation Bond Act Board awarded Acton-Agua Dulce’s application with a $4.6 million grant in the fall of 2005. A last-minute presentation before the Board, in Sacramento, by local residents and members of the Library Planning Advisory Committee no doubt was instrumental in swaying the Board in our favor.
For two years more, after many meetings with architects, county agencies, artists and more, the dream of many was beginning to take shape. While it is amazing how long the process has taken, it is safe to say that the hard work and dedication of Friends members and Advisory Planning Committee members has been exemplary and unwavering. For three more years, the community could watch as ground officially was broken with ceremony on October 29, 2007. Supervisor Antonovich officiated along with County Library staff over a ribbon cutting witnessed by a large number of community members. Construction then began. Though the process has been slow and tedious, the end result no doubt has proven worth the wait.
The library is located at 33792 Crown Valley Road in Acton just north of Sierra Highway.