Merced County breaks ground on library relocation, renovations to Dos Palos community center

Elected officials and members of the community gathered to celebrate during a groundbreaking ceremony kicking off renovations to the Del Hale Hall Community Center and the addition of a new public library at O’Banion Park in Dos Palos on Wednesday.

The multi-phase project includes relocating the Dos Palos library branch, built in 1963, from its current location at Almond Street and Golden Gate Avenue to O’Banion Park next to the Del Hale Hall Community Center, which will be renovated.

Sen. Anna Caballero, D-Merced, with support from then-Assemblymember Adam Gray, secured $3 million in funds in the state’s 2022-2023 budget for the library’s upgrades. Additionally, about $2.7 million in funds was obtained from the California State Library’s competitive Building Forward Library Improvement Grant Program.

“I am thrilled to see this project moving so quickly,” Caballero said.

According to Caballero, the Dos Palos branch of the library is the only one within a 17-mile radius and serves not only residents of Dos Palos but also the surrounding unincorporated areas. The library will serve those who need reading material, access to computers, research assistance or merely a quiet place to gather.

“Libraries provide us with access to information and resources and a safe community gathering place,” Caballero said. “[The facility] supports literacy and education and promotes life-long learning.”

According to Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria, D-Merced, Caballero and Gray were both instrumental in doing the work and securing the funding leading up to Wednesday’s groundbreaking ceremony.

“For far too long our communities — communities like Dos Palos feel left out, neglected, not invested in from the State of California,” said Soria. “So I’m glad to see that we’ve had leaders that recognize the importance in investing in projects like this one.”

Construction on the project to improve Del Hale Hall and relocate the library began Wednesday at the conclusion of the groundbreaking ceremony and is expected to be completed by late 2024, according to Merced County District 5 Supervisor Scott Silveira, who represents Dos Palos and Los Banos.

The Dos Palos branch will provide technology and high-speed internet, which some homes lack, Silveira said.

“It’s going to have all the modern technology,” said Silveira. “It’s going to have high-speed internet, so they’re going to be able to not only come in and still do the library things and read books, but also it’s a place for people that maybe don’t have good internet at home that need to build a resume,” Silveira said.

Silveira said he is passionate about the project, which he began pursuing after he was elected in 2019.

Dos Palos Mayor April Hogue said the new library, which will be attached to the community center, will also serve as a place where members of the community who don’t have air conditioning can cool off on hot days.

“We use our local library now, but it is so old and outdated,” said Hogue. “So it’s going to be so exciting to have something that’s state of the art. It’s going to be, like I said, tied to our community center, and it’s just going to be a focal point as you come into the town so I’m very excited.”