Tampa Construction Company Chosen For Library Expansion

A Tampa based-construction company that has worked with IKEA and the University of South Florida will be completing construction on the expansion of the Upper Tampa Bay Library.

The Williams Company has worked on projects throughout Florida and the Southeastern United States.

An evaluation committee appointed by Hillsborough County reviewed the request for proposal submitted by the Williams Company. It then went through a review and scoring process.

"They're well experienced," said Swati Bose, manager of Hillsborough County architectural services.

The County Commission is scheduled to approve the Williams Company contract on Thursday, Nov. 15. Work is set to begin on the $2-million expansion in December.

The 11,000-square-foot expansion to the library will include a larger teen room, more space for the used bookstore and more meeting rooms.

The project will take about 10-12 months to complete. The library will remain open most of the time, however, some sections could be blocked off as the work progresses, Bose said.

The County Commission allotted funding for the project as part of a $9.4 million one-time budget motion for renovation at Upper Tampa Bay, Jimmie B. Keel, and Bloomingdale libraries.

The Williams Company has a wide variety of past projects. Of note is its work on the new, sleeker Goodwill Retail stores like the location at 3929 Tampa Road and extensive construction work on SeaWorld in Orlando.