What Happens to the Old Library on Cherokee Road Once the New One Opens

"Construction of the new library allows the existing Given Memorial Library and Tufts Archives building to be reconfigured so the Archives can expand into the space currently occupied by the library," Village Manager Doug Willardson explained to the Pinehurst Village Council in January, as reported by The Sandhills Sentinel.

That sentence describes the whole library project, and it has two halves. Most of the attention has gone to the first half, the new building on Magnolia Road. That building is on its timeline and came in below estimates. The second half sits in the Village center at 150 Cherokee Road, and in September its renovation estimate came in at about $4.1 million. The Village has $2.5 million budgeted for it.

So the building going up is the settled part of the project. The one already standing is the part still being decided.

One Budget Covering Two Buildings

The Village does not treat these as separate projects. The FY 2026 Strategic Operating Plan set aside about $8.46 million for the library and archives together. The new library's construction bid, along with updated furnishings and contingency costs, came in about $500,000 under earlier estimates. That left the library portion at about $5.96 million and roughly $2.5 million for the Tufts Archives renovation.

Because the two halves share one budget, savings on the first building ended up as room for the second. That room is now smaller than the latest estimate for the second building.

What Is Standing on Magnolia Road Right Now

In September 2025 the Council awarded the construction contract to M-Squared Construction, Inc. It was the low bidder of seven firms, at $4.5 million. The contract calls for substantial completion within 365 days of commencement. The Village has also said total project cost should stay below the original $6 million estimate once furnishings, technology and equipment are added.

Here is how the site has progressed this year, from Village reports:

1. January 2026. Groundbreaking at the Magnolia Road site, followed by the building permit and a Notice to Proceed.
2. March 2026. Clearing and grading began. Some trees came down, and the Village said it was trying to keep as much of the canopy as possible.
3. April 2026. Tree protection zones were marked, and a temporary construction office went up.
4. May 2026. The building footprint was visible, and fencing and screening were up around the site.
5. August 11, 2026. The Council heard that the building pad, underground utilities, reinforcing steel and concrete slab were done, and site drainage was about 95% complete. Next on the schedule were the front and rear patio footings, the start of metal framing, and beams for the storefront systems.

The August report is the most recent construction update the Village has published. The framing and storefront work it listed were plans for the following month, and no later report confirms them yet.

The finished building will be about 9,250 square feet, designed by Oakley Collier Architects. The bid documents list standing-seam metal roofing, fiber-cement siding, masonry veneer and cast stone. The plans show 40 parking spaces, two of them accessible. A Village sidewalk project on Rattlesnake Trail is planned to connect to the library, which will give people a way to walk in, not just drive. The Rattlesnake Trail work was one of the projects carried into FY 2027 in August, and no new completion date was given.

The size was argued over. In April 2024 the Council chose the 9,250-square-foot design over an 8,400-square-foot version on a 3–2 vote. The larger design added about $484,500. It also raised book capacity to 36,000 volumes, compared with 25,000 for the smaller design and the 17,000 volumes the current library holds. The Council also looked at expanding the current library onto the Village Green and set that option aside. It was the most expensive choice, it had little parking, and the Green's landmark status would have brought National Park Service review into the design.

That decision is the reason the old building ends up empty enough to become something else.

Why the Cherokee Road Number Keeps Climbing

The building at 150 Cherokee Road dates to 1964. Sarah Given Larson paid for the original library, and Richard S. Tufts donated the land. The Tufts Archives was added about a decade later. It holds the collections that record the history of Pinehurst and the Sandhills. The Village took over running both in April 2022, after the Given/Tufts organization donated the building, collections and furnishings. The former library board now operates as the Given Tufts Foundation, an independent nonprofit. It runs the bookshop and puts the profits toward the library and Archives.

Here is how the renovation estimate has moved:

• April 2024. About $1,516,140, separate from the library budget. At the time, the plan was for the Tufts foundation to raise money for that renovation while the Village paid for the new library.
• January 2026. $2.5 million left in the combined budget. Willardson said it had to cover design, engineering, construction and the buildout of a museum or visitor experience, and that neither design option included a full museum-style exhibit installation.
• September 8, 2026. The architect's estimate reached about $4.1 million.

These figures do not all describe the same scope. The design has been reworked several times since 2024, which accounts for part of the increase. In January, the Council looked at two approaches. One kept the existing footprint and rearranged the interior for archival storage, research space, staff work areas and exhibits. The other filled in two recessed areas of the building to add offices, storage and a break room. The architects said that second option cost much more and did little for visitors. Council members also discussed water getting into the basement and the lack of ADA-compliant access at the front entrance, two problems the building has had for years.

By August 11 there were nine floor plans. The Council discussed whether to add an elevator, along with the staircase, accessible entrances, room sizes, how people move through the building, where the kitchen goes and how the public spaces are arranged. The Village put the elevator at about $500,000 by itself. The plan has kept one thing constant throughout. The historic exterior stays, and the inside is modernized to make the building more of a destination.

The Decisions Still Ahead for Cherokee Road

In September, the Council chose to keep designing and take the project to bid before deciding whether to cut costs through value engineering or add money. Once bids come in, the Council can compare real construction prices with confirmed donations, available Village funds and any possible use of fund balance.

In January, Willardson described how the money was expected to split:

"Staff's working assumption is that the Village would fund the core building improvements within the established project budget. Any funds raised through joint Village and Foundation efforts could then be used to enhance the Archives experience, allowing the project to range from a basic, functional museum to a more robust public history space."

The September estimate puts pressure on that split. If the core work costs more than $2.5 million, private donations may have to pay for part of the building itself, not only the exhibits. The September summary says only that potential private donations could supplement Village funding. A confidential feasibility study found that private support is possible, and its details have not been made public. The Village also plans to bring in museum-experience consultants, including firms that have worked with the USGA. Longtime archivist Audrey Moriarty is part of shaping the project's direction.

In the meantime, the Village directory still lists Given Memorial Library at 150 Cherokee Road. No Village material we reviewed mentions a temporary location or changed hours during construction.

These are the points that will show where the Cherokee Road project is headed:

• A Village construction report confirming framing on Magnolia Road
• Bid results for the Archives renovation
• Whether the final floor plan includes the elevator
• Any announcement from the Given Tufts Foundation about a fundraising campaign or naming opportunities tied to the Archives

The Magnolia Road building could reach substantial completion as early as March 2027. The scope of the Cherokee Road renovation will depend on the bids that come back.

Bill Sahadi has spent years restoring older buildings, including the historic Bush Cottage in downtown Southern Pines. He follows projects like the Tufts Archives renovation closely because renovating a historic building rarely costs what the first estimate says. If you own an older home in or near the Village and want to talk about what your property's history means for its upkeep and its value, Bill Sahadi is glad to go over it with you. Let's Connect.