EAST HELENA — A new facility for the Lewis & Clark Library’s East Helena branch is another step closer to becoming reality. The Lewis & Clark Library Foundation recently launched a capital campaign to raise money for the project.
“We have a site for the library, we have some initial designs for what the library will look like, and now we’re in the process of raising the funds to build the library,” Lewis & Clark Library director John Finn said.
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Current plans call for an 11,000 square-foot building, much larger than the current branch building, which is less than 2,500 square feet.
The new library building is planned to be built by JFK Park. Along with books and spots to read, plans for the building also include a community gathering space.
“Having services, having places to gather, having places to meet for a growing community is very important,” East Helena Mayor Kelly Harris said. “Having a big library is just a very impactful thing to the community.”
The current price tag on the building project is about $8 million.
So far, Finn said the library has identified about $3 million in funding, including about $1 million from the Lewis & Clark Library’s savings and a potential $2 million loan through the Montana Board of Investments. That still leaves $5 million to be funded.
“Definitely looking for grant money, but also, the Lewis and Clark Library Foundation has kicked off a capital campaign to raise that $5 million,” Finn said.
It’s a lot of money, but library officials said the new facility is a needed upgrade from the current space.
“The numbers are just increasing on a regular basis; we see more and more new people coming in,” Lewis and Clark Library East Helena branch manager Andrea Eckerson said. “Story times have increased in size. This community room fits 24 people uncomfortably, and we’ve maxed that out more than once with our programming.”
A new library building has been in the works for some time. In early 2025, the Lewis & Clark Library got permission from the East Helena City Council to begin surveying, and in summer 2025, the council unanimously voted to move ahead with plans to build a new branch in JFK Park.
The new building is planned with the city’s and the surrounding area’s projected growth in mind.
“I think with the subdivisions that have been proposed and are about to start being built, we’re right at the threshold of that, and it would be perfect timing to have a bigger library with more resources to offer,” Eckerson said.
The Lewis and Clark Library offers more than just books to check out, there are also games, musical instruments, technology and more that people can borrow, along with book clubs to join and educational programs to attend. Library officials said they hope what a new facility in a new location will allow more people to take advantage of all the library has to offer.
