CGS President Jim Sorenson writes:
To many of us, the Library at CGS is a major part of our identity. The closing of this resource to our members and the genealogical community was a serious move which was not done lightly but was required in consideration of the health crisis we were facing. While we would love to have a grand reopening party at the library, it would not be appropriate in the current circumstances. Our ad hoc reopening committee under the leadership of Vice President Maureen Hanlon has spent considerable time reviewing government guidelines and protocols as well as communicating with other libraries in the area relative to their plans and best practices. Training of our desk duty personnel has already started. It has not been an easy task, especially with changing and sometimes contradictory guidance – I thank all of the committee members for their hard work and persistence.

While the library has been shut down, we have made some updates and changes. Our Facilities Director, Rich Kehoe, has handled many tasks during our absence. In addition to continued interface with the building management, he has overseen:

• Repainting of some of the walls with an accent color added around the front desk.
• Professional cleaning of the carpets.
• Installation of plastic screens around the front desk.
• Professional cleaning of all touch surfaces before we reopen, in accordance with CDC guidelines.
• Installation of a new copier which has the capability of writing output to a thumb-drive.

We are using a reservation system to control the number of people in the library in accordance with Alameda County guidelines. However, the reservations are also required by the building’s management for security purposes and as such will continue after the pandemic restrictions are lifted. The building has also placed a current restriction of no more than two people at a time per elevator compartment.

We know that some of our CGS members choose to not renew their membership in the past year due to our shutdown or other impacts of the pandemic on their life situation. If you are part of that group, we understand and look forward to welcoming you back if you wish to renew your membership.

If you have any questions about the library, please email [email protected]

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