PHOTO PROVIDED Cenre County Commissioners announced Tuesday $750,000 in grant funding for the Centre Hall Area Branch Library, pictured, at 109 W. Beryl St., Centre Hall.

BELLEFONTE — A $750,000 state grant announced Tuesday by Centre County’s commissioners and the Centre County Library and Historical Museum (CCLHM) will advance the long-anticipated expansion and renovation of the Centre Hall Library.

Once complete, the project will more than double the library’s size and modernize its facilities, giving staff the space to expand programming and better serve the Penns Valley community.

“As an organization, we are over the moon excited about all of this,” said Denise Sticha, retired executive director of the CCLHM, during this week’s commissioners meeting.

The library was one of 27 statewide to receive funding through the Keystone Grants for Public Library Facilities program, which supports the planning, acquisition, development and rehabilitation of libraries across the commonwealth. The Centre Hall Area Branch of the CCLHM received the maximum available award as part of this year’s $11 million allocation.

Opened in 1997, the library, which serves the municipalities of the Penns Valley Region — including Centre Hall and Millheim Boroughs and Potter, Gregg, Penn, Miles and Haines Townships — was described by Commissioner Mark Higgins as “well loved” but in need of “some more elbow room.”

The $750,000 grant, which requires a dollar-for-dollar match from the library system, makes a significant dent in the $2.4 million projected cost of the planned expansion and renovation.

With funding secured, details of the project are now taking shape.

CCLHM’s proposed plan would see the library more than double in square footage by expanding the rear of the building toward Centre Hall Elementary School. The renovation will also include upgrades to building utilities and the addition of a family-sized bathroom.

One of the features library staff were most excited about is a large meeting room that can be divided to allow simultaneous programming.

“We have a lot of people who use our books, but the things that are not books, I think, are what make the library so important and special — all the other resources that we have — and this is going to help a lot,” said Kathleen Edwards, branch manager of the Centre Hall Library.

The announcement from the state officially came last week, and according to library representatives, it has been a whirlwind of planning since.

Staff met with Centre County Deputy Administrator Natalie Corman Tuesday following the commissioners meeting to map out next steps, including when construction could begin.

The grant contract requires the project to be wrapped up in fall 2027, so CCLHM is hoping to potentially start construction as soon as this fall.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Sticha said. “Now the work starts in earnest.”

The remainder of the funding, including the required match, the library hopes to finance through the Centre Hall Expansion Capital Campaign, which is supported by the Partnership for Penns Valley Library Services and community members.

To learn more about the campaign, donate or join the committee, visit www.centrecountylibrary.org/expandingcentrehallareabranchlibrary.

“We are confident that we will be able to raise the money to do this project,” Sticha said.

For the grant, the library had to demonstrate it had the resources to complete the project. While officials said they have sufficient resources through investments, they are hopeful they will not need to draw from them.

In concluding remarks, Higgins thanked the project’s many partners, as well as Gov. Josh Shapiro and the state legislature for supporting the grant award.

“Of course, this was a team effort,” he said.