Photo by Deb Gau Library patron Betty Pearson and Tyler Library Director Shelly Finzen talked about plans for a new public library building in Tyler. A rendering of the proposed new building is on display on the current library’s front desk.

TYLER — On average, around 20 or 30 people a day stop by the Tyler Public Library. For a city with a population of about 1,100, that’s a decent number, said library director Shelly Finzen.

“I feel that it’s a very busy place,” Finzen said. But things can get crowded quickly. “If I have more than 20 people in here, it feels like people are standing on top of each other.”

Finzen hopes all that will change this year. With the help of grant funds and community contributions, Tyler is looking at building a standalone public library building to replace its current location in a shared building with the city offices.

“Tyler Public Library is committed to serving the Tyler area community in a variety of ways, including constructing a new building that will have clean air, private meeting space, and room to grow,” Finzen said.

Bids from nine contractors were opened for the project on Feb. 5. Finzen said the bids will go before the Tyler City Council at their next regular meeting March 2.

In 2025, the city of Tyler approved construction of a new public library building with an estimated cost of up to $1 million. “From that point on, we worked with Engan Associates (Architects)” on the project design, Finzen said.

The low contractor bid opened Feb. 5 came in under the estimated $1 million project cost, Finzen said. However, if the council approves construction bids, the library project will still be on a tight schedule. Finzen said the library had received $500,000 in Minnesota Multi-Purpose Community Facility Projects Grant funding to help with the cost of construction. One of the conditions of the grant was that the funds needed to be spent by the end of this year, she said.

Finzen estimated that the current Tyler library space is is less than 1,000 square feet – enough room for bookshelves, computer workstations and a circulation desk, but not big enough to host guest speakers or programs like summer reading camp. The library has to find other locations in Tyler to hold those programs.

The Tyler Public Library serves its area community in a lot of ways, Finzen said. In addition to checking out books and providing computer assistance, the library also delivers materials to homebound people, does story time visits with day care providers, and holds weekly after-school activities.

Finzen said some of the planning work to build a new library started a few years ago. Prior to that, the city had done work to address mold issues in the current building, she said.

“I started working on getting a building built back in 2023,” Finzen said. That including searching for grant funding, she said.

The planned new standalone library building would have about 2,300 square feet of space, Finzen said. That would include features like better accessibility, meeting space, a librarian’s workroom and a designated children’s area. The new library would still be located in Tyler’s downtown.

“We will be moving like half a block north,” to a lot that is currently vacant, Finzen said.

Finzen said that in addition to the $500,000 Multi-Purpose Community Facility Projects grant, she was also pursuing other grant funding for the library construction project. Plus, she said, “We have been getting donations from the community.”

“We’ve seen an overwhelming amount of support,” Finzen said. Tyler area residents, as well as other southwest Minnesota libraries and the Plum Creek regional library system, have all asked about the library construction project, she said. City officials have also supported the project. “I can’t say thank you enough to the City Council, the city administrator,” and city employees, she said.

Finzen said community donations are still being accepted for the Tyler library project. People interested in contributing can contact the Tyler Public Library. There is also an online donation platform through the Southwest Initiative Foundation, that can be found at bit.ly/tylerlibrary.