Leighton Township Library Board officials want to expand the current building to the south, and they were able to persuade the Township Board to sign for a loan.

Library Director Karen McKinnon outlined plans to board members Thursday evening, noting that the cost estimate is $760,000 and the library already has set aside about 40 percent. She intends to negotiate with representatives from United Bank.

She said the expansion is needed to accommodate more space for activities, education and study rooms for tutoring and test taking. She added that more room in the aisles between books also is being sought.

“It would be great if we could start (the project) next spring,” she told the board.

Leighton Library originally had been doing financing business with Chemical Bank, but the institution was sold to Twin Cities Financial (TCF), which didn’t seem to understand the nuances of small-town libraries and their needs.

Noting that the Township Board did business with United Bank for its new township hall adjacent to the library, McKinnon asked for the board’s blessing in signing on, thereby improving chances of a good interest rate.

She said the Library Board last year had been discussing a small expansion project, but since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, it’s been proven that most local patrons still prefer physical books to e-books.

McKinnon said she would meet Monday night with the Library Board to discuss talks with United Bank and the annual one-mill levy for the library.

Clerk Mary Lou Nieuwenhuis cautioned, “We’d like to keep the millage at one, though you legally could ask for more than that.”