Preparation is underway for a new Binghamton University library facility even as the site is being used as a Covid-19 mass vaccination center.

The former Gannett printing plant near CFJ Park in Johnson City was acquired last September for $4.5 million.

University President Harvey Stenger said the process of moving books from the Vestal campus to the new site is to start April 1.

Speaking on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program, Stenger said there are about 400,000 volumes to be moved from the main library.

The books will be transferred to the 90,000-square-foot Johnson City site to clear the way for a complete renovation of the third floor of the campus library.

Stenger said about 20,000 square feet will be used for temporary storage while the construction project is underway in Vestal.

Books now in a storage site in Conklin are expected to be moved to the Johnson City annex in about two years.

A mass vaccination tent set up outside the future Binghamton University library annex in Johnson City on March 1, 2021. Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News
A mass vaccination tent set up outside the future Binghamton University library annex in Johnson City on March 1, 2021. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)
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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or (607) 772-8400 extension 233.

For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

LOOK: Answers to 30 common COVID-19 vaccine questions

While much is still unknown about the coronavirus and the future, what is known is that the currently available vaccines have gone through all three trial phases and are safe and effective. It will be necessary for as many Americans as possible to be vaccinated in order to finally return to some level of pre-pandemic normalcy, and hopefully these 30 answers provided here will help readers get vaccinated as soon they are able.

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