SIDNEY — Construction of the Amos Memorial Public Library is underway, and with the summer weather this year, the project is on course to make progress toward an early summer 2017 completion.

To date, the Shelby County Libraries capital campaign has received $1,690,744.50 in private gifts and pledges to add to the $2.5 million from the library reserves. The remaining funds are comprised of several in-kind gifts and donations from interested individuals who have yet to make a specific commitment toward the $4.5 million project.

Library operations have been minimally disrupted, largely because the staff is adapting well to the temporary inconvenience a construction project of this size creates, according to Suzanne Cline, executive director.

“Our staff has an eye on the prize, knowing that what we end up with is what we’ve needed for a long time,” she said. “The noise has been a little bit hard on our patrons, especially the regulars, but the people who are coming and going understand. They are excited, and it’s neat for kids to watch the construction.”

The building, at completion, will offer upgrades in technology, a meeting room for the community, and programming and collections space for children and teens.

“We’ve been working on this for several years,” said Cline, who has been the director since 2005. “We knew there couldn’t be a strategic plan without the building being a part of it. The funding was always the hang-up. We just couldn’t make the leap from needing it to funding it, but our community has been so generous for special projects throughout the county that it boils down to the support we’ve received from them.”