A pedestrian walks past the north side of Mountain View Library that was damaged during an early morning vehicle collision between a sedan and a tractor-trailer that came to rest inside the building. Photographed on Monday, Aug. 3. (Bill Roth / ADN)
The Mountain View branch of the Anchorage Public Library remains closed indefinitely as municipal staff assess damage to the building after it was struck by two vehicles in a weekend traffic crash.
On Monday, plywood covered part of the library’s north-facing facade, though most of the building’s exterior looked to be intact. Library spokesperson Misty Rose Nesvick said that according to initial assessments, the building appears structurally sound.
“However, there are some additional steps that we need to take before staff can occupy the building for any length of time. Full damages and restoration efforts are still to be determined,” Nesvick wrote in an email Monday evening. “The municipal Maintenance & Operations department has assigned us a project manager who will be providing timeline updates as they know them.”
The crash occurred just after 2:15 a.m. Saturday, the police department said in an online update that day. Anchorage police reported a sedan traveling southbound on Bragaw Street and a tractor-trailer traveling westbound on Mountain View Drive crashed into each other and then collided with the library. The driver of the sedan was transported to a hospital for treatment.
Photos of Saturday’s damage show a portion of a wall and window smashed to rubble behind the library’s circulation desk.
The Mountain View Library was damaged during an early morning vehicle collision Saturday, Aug. 1, between a sedan and a tractor-trailer that came to rest inside the north side of the building. Photographed on Monday, Aug. 3. (Bill Roth / ADN) The Mountain View Library was damaged during an early morning vehicle collision between a sedan and a tractor-trailer that came to rest on the north side of the building. Photographed on Monday, Aug. 3. (Bill Roth / ADN)
According to a social media post from the Anchorage Public Library, with in-person borrowing halted indefinitely, patrons are asked to call the library system about current hold requests. Items can still be returned through the drop box on the building’s west side, or at any other Anchorage Public Library branch location.
The library has “no specific needs at this time,” according to the post, but is directing interested individuals to make donations through Anchorage Friends of the Library, the municipality’s charitable nonprofit arm.
