Mount Vernon Library Foundation - A History
The Mount Vernon Library Foundation was founded in 2010 inspired by a gift from Sonya Beard, a business woman and philanthropist in Mount Vernon who recognized that the City of Mount Vernon was growing and that a new library would be needed in the future. Brian Soneda, then the Library Director, and Harold Page, the Foundation’s first president, did the ground work to establish the Foundation, setting it up as a 501c(3) charitable organization as of 2012.
In 2014. The Foundation provided partial funding for a Needs Assessment and Feasibility Study conducted by Berk Consulting and SKHS Architects who produced a report that provided guidance for location, size, and amenities for the new facility. It stated that the Mount Vernon community saw the Library as a critical provider of access to information, education, and learning support recognizing that the current site needed replacement rather an upgrade.
This first effort stalled but in early 2018 Councilman Bob Fiedler and Mayor Jill Boudreau found that a plot of land at 208 Kincaid St. might be suitable for a combined parking facility, library, and community center. In March 2018, the City and Skagit County entered into an interlocal agreement to jointly cooperate in exploring options for this combined facility.
In late 2018, the Foundation formally committed to raise at least $3 million in support of the project. Funds provided by the Foundation are to be primarily focused on fulfilling the needs for the interior appointments of the building. The new facility was dubbed the “Mount Vernon Library Commons”.
In 2014. The Foundation provided partial funding for a Needs Assessment and Feasibility Study conducted by Berk Consulting and SKHS Architects who produced a report that provided guidance for location, size, and amenities for the new facility. It stated that the Mount Vernon community saw the Library as a critical provider of access to information, education, and learning support recognizing that the current site needed replacement rather an upgrade.
This first effort stalled but in early 2018 Councilman Bob Fiedler and Mayor Jill Boudreau found that a plot of land at 208 Kincaid St. might be suitable for a combined parking facility, library, and community center. In March 2018, the City and Skagit County entered into an interlocal agreement to jointly cooperate in exploring options for this combined facility.
In late 2018, the Foundation formally committed to raise at least $3 million in support of the project. Funds provided by the Foundation are to be primarily focused on fulfilling the needs for the interior appointments of the building. The new facility was dubbed the “Mount Vernon Library Commons”.
