Groundbreaking Celebration

HAYWARD, CALIFORNIA - The city of Hayward will break ground on a new, state of the art 21st Century Library and Heritage Plaza in a public celebration at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 3, 2015.

The groundbreaking celebration is free and open to the public and will feature several family-friendly attractions including children’s crafts and face painting organized by Hayward children’s librarians, a bounce house donated by Hayward Area Recreation and Park District, an historic 1923 fire engine from Hayward Fire Station #1, event souvenirs donated by Friends of Hayward Library, and a surprise appearance by “monumental figures from Hayward’s past”.

The festivities begin at 10:00 a.m. on the corner of C Street and Mission Boulevard where the new library will be built. The formal event program and groundbreaking ceremonies begin at 11:00 a.m.  

Immediately following the official groundbreaking by local dignitaries, the community is invited to join in the groundbreaking through a seed-planting activity organized by the Hayward Seed Lending Library. Audience members will have the opportunity to plant seeds in commemorative pots using the groundbreaking soil, to take home and grow in their homes and gardens.

The celebration will mark the start of construction work on the most environmentally sustainable public building ever constructed in Hayward. The October 3 groundbreaking is major milestone after nearly twenty years of planning and effort including the approval in 2014 by Hayward voters of a ½ percent local sales tax, Measure C, to fund the project.

The 21st Century Library is a three-story, 58,000 square foot, urban public library facility designed to serve the Hayward community for the next 100 years. Constructed of steel, concrete, glass and terracotta, the new library and adjacent parking garage will be fitted with rooftop solar panels that will offset 100% of the energy consumed by the new library as well as the parking garage. When completed, Hayward’s new library will be among the largest “Zero Net Energy” public buildings in the nation.

The project also includes an innovative rainwater catchment and recycling system that will save and recycle 400,000 gallons of rainwater per year. The water will be filtered and treated then used to flush toilets in the new library and irrigate landscaping in Heritage Plaza. After construction of the new library is complete in late 2017, the deteriorating old library building will be torn down to make way for installation of an underground rainwater reservoir as well as the complete restoration of Heritage Plaza.

Heritage Plaza dates back to Hayward’s founding days in the mid-1800’s. The site was part of the homestead of Hayward’s first landowner and rancher, Don Guillermo Castro. When Castro subdivided and sold his land holdings in 1864, he dedicated one full city block to the people of Hayward for use as a public plaza in perpetuity.

Today, this plaza is filled with century-old heritage trees, and will be restored to its historic roots as an open space and community gathering place. Hayward’s Heritage Plaza is the size of San Francisco’s Union Square, and when fully restored it will be used for community festivals, farmer’s markets, music and cultural performances, civic observances and other community events for generations to come.

Groundbreaking Celebration. 21st Century Library and Heritage Plaza
Saturday, October 3, 2015 at 11:00 a.m.
Corner of C Street and Mission Boulevard
Hayward, California