Wentworth Library to close for yearlong renovation

By Jake Spitzack | Staff Writer | April 2025

On April 7, Wentworth Library in West St. Paul will close for the start of a yearlong $7.4 million renovation project. During the closure, temporary library space will be located on the second floor of the Dakota County Northern Service Center, 1 Mendota Road W., West St. Paul. Visitors will be able to pick up holds, browse a limited collection of materials and use self-checkout, and access computers, copiers and printers on weekdays, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Some staff will be present.

Last renovated in 2008, Wentworth Library is one of 10 branches of the Dakota County Library system. Work includes infrastructure upgrades, moving the multi-stall public restrooms in the entryway further inside the building, relocating all nine study rooms and making them handicap-accessible, adding meeting and conference rooms, and replacing furniture. Relocating the study rooms from the southern wall to the center of the building will allow for better temperature control in the rooms, which has been known to fluctuate, allow staff to better see inside the rooms, and provide more daylight for library users. Six of the rooms will be for individual use and three will accommodate two people.

The large meeting room near the entryway will remain and another room is being added that can seat up to 14. The existing medium-sized meeting room will be updated, and a program room will be added. Program rooms are a new concept that the County first launched at the Kaposia Library in South St. Paul, built last year. These multifunction rooms feature specialized equipment like sewing machines and 3D printers and are open for arts and crafts and other programs. The one at Wentworth will have a sink, storage space and furniture that can be reconfigured for groups of varying sizes.

The children’s area will get a large interactive play feature and a calming room for kids with sensory sensitivities. The space will also be revamped to be more welcoming for older kids, and a teen area will remain.

“Another space that will be new to this location is an enclosed quiet zone,” said Dakota County project manager Trish Bremer. “We will have a lot of seating out in the open area so people can lounge and read at their leisure but if people want the more intentional quiet space to do ‘heads down’ work or to just escape, we will have a room that is intended for that…. the use of libraries really is diverse now.”

Leo A Daly was hired as the design consultant last year and a construction bid is expected to be awarded to a developer at the end of March.

“Dakota County has a history of renovating our libraries on a [15-year] cycle to make sure we can stay current, and one doesn’t get left behind,” said Bremer. “We completed that last cycle with the new construction of the Kaposia Library that opened just last year, and now we’re starting our next cycle with Wentworth.”

The main goal of the previous cycle was to maximize space so a lot of libraries got additions and new large meeting rooms for community use. The next cycle is primarily focused on improving accessibility and updating mechanical, electrical, plumbing and security systems. One other goal is to ensure libraries continue responding to user needs, which have been changing in recent years. Bremer said there’s been less demand for books and other printed materials and more requests for meeting rooms, socializing spaces and electronic devices.

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