Hogan Construction Group LLC of Norcross was the lowest of four bidders at $11,294,000. Gwinnett County will manage construction and the two entities will share in the cost. The library portion funding comes from SPLOST. Construction will take about 14 months. The 47,940-square-foot, two-level building will include 5,217 square feet of shared community and support space in addition to the 18,864-square-foot library and 24,927-square-foot city hall. It is designed to meet LEED Certification Version 3.0 through the U.S. Green Building Council.
Primary funding for Gwinnett’s public library system comes from Gwinnett County. District 2 Commissioner Lynette Howard said, “The existing Lilburn branch at 788 Hillcrest Road is one of the system’s oldest and smallest branches, so we are relocating it to a building twice the size and making it more computer-oriented. I am excited about this branch being the first upgrade of our older libraries and that this is the first joint building with a municipality. I truly appreciate everyone working together to make it happen.”
Lilburn had outgrown its present city hall at 76 Main Street. It needed space for public safety and municipal courts and wanted to develop a downtown core by relocating to a more accessible and prominent location. Mayor Johnny Crist said, “We want to express our sincere appreciation of the partnership formed in making this project a reality. We look forward to working with Gwinnett County as we embark into the construction phase of this wonderful project.”
The local governments have already worked together to realign Main Street with two roundabouts to smooth traffic flow to Old Town and to lower Church Street by eight feet to improve sight distance and safety. The $3.5-million project was also supported by the State Road and Tollway Authority and the Lilburn Community Improvement District.