It is not often that we get to talk about a state of the art, newly built public building, but residents of Fontana CA real estate can brag about recent developments in this area in their city. The Lewis Library and Technology Center opened its doors in 2008, after years of planning and building by groups including a London architect and municipal planners. Today it is one of the true landmarks of the city, as well as the largest building to be found. The fact that this building stands today is even more amazing when one considers the finishing touches were added during the worst years of the recession so far.
In part, the Lewis Library (as it is often abbreviated to) has been built in order to help combat the recession, and its effects on Fontana residents. If you have lost your job creating lead castings at a Fontana plant or in the outlying areas, going to the Lewis Library may help you out. The Center includes a career center for adults looking for work, and there is some training as well as advice from career counselors available on occasion as well.
The technology part of the building's title may be a little bit of an overreach. Don't expect to walk into a museum like haven of invention progression from the past to the present, or even a vast display of the technological might of our nation at the present time. The Lewis Library does have technology at work, but for the most part it is what you might expect from any public library. There are computers available for public use. Students can use them to research reports on advances in the pneumatic conveyor, but that's about as technological as things really get.
Still, those computers and the free Internet they offer come in very handy for people doing research of all types, as well as people looking for jobs in the Fontana area. What's more, ten percent of the computers are Spanish language computers, reflecting the ethnic diversity of the area. If you are more comfortable researching utility locating in Spanish, you have that option at the Lewis Library.
The Lewis Library and Technology Center includes everything the Fontana citizen could want in a public library, but it came at quite a high price. Estimates are that the total cost just to put up the library were in excess of sixty million dollars! Although research and development tax credit may help to defray the future costs, you can bet that the building will take a large percentage of tax dollars as operating capital over the next few years. Still, most residents of Fontana say it's worth it, for what the library represents to the people here.
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