Members of the Loganville Rotary Club recently received a firsthand look at the progress being made inside the new O’Kelly Memorial Library, including a room that will recognize the club and the lasting community legacy of former Rotarian Kurt Hansen.

The tour gave Rotary members an opportunity to see the results of a project the organization has supported in a significant way. In October 2025, the Loganville Rotary Club presented a $40,000 donation from its Kurt Hansen Fund to help support the new library. It was the largest single donation made by the club during its more than two decades of service in Loganville.

In recognition of that contribution, a room inside the new library will be named in honor of Kurt Hansen and the Loganville Rotary Club. Plans for the room include a photograph of Hansen and information about his life, his community involvement and the vision that ultimately led to the fund bearing his name.

The room also contains a stained-glass window that was carefully removed from the existing O’Kelly Memorial Library and brought to the new facility. Preserving and relocating the window allows an important piece of the original library to remain part of the community’s next chapter.

Hansen was a longtime Loganville pharmacist, Rotarian and member of the city’s planning commission. Before his unexpected death at age 51, he encouraged the club to establish a fund that would receive regular contributions, grow through investment and eventually support a major project benefiting the Loganville community.

At the time, no particular project had been selected.

The Rotary Club continued building the fund after Hansen’s death, allocating 10 percent of its fundraising proceeds and adding contributions from members. As plans for the new O’Kelly Memorial Library came together, the library emerged as the type of lasting community investment Hansen had envisioned.

The recent tour allowed club members to see that vision taking physical form.

The new library is being built at 210 Main Street, near the intersection of Main, Covington and Lucy streets and adjacent to the Loganville Town Green. Its downtown location is intended to provide improved accessibility while connecting the library with the city’s shared parking, greenspace, community events and outdoor programming areas.

The approximately 10,833-square-foot facility will replace the current 7,162-square-foot library at 363 Conyers Road. The existing building opened in 1989 and has become one of Walton County’s busiest library branches, but its limited space and aging infrastructure have made it increasingly difficult to accommodate Loganville’s growing population and expanding demand for programs and services.

The new facility is expected to provide larger public areas, dedicated children’s and youth spaces, additional meeting areas, improved technology resources and opportunities for outdoor programming. It is designed to function not only as a place to borrow books, but also as a community gathering place for education, literacy, technology, meetings and family activities.

Construction officially began following a groundbreaking ceremony in April 2025. The project has been supported by a combination of state and local funding, including a $3 million Georgia Capital Outlay Grant, $1.2 million in Walton County impact fees and $1.5 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds allocated by the City of Loganville. The city also provided the downtown property.

Private contributions, including the Loganville Rotary Club’s gift, are helping support enhancements beyond the core construction funding and demonstrate the community support behind the project.

The new O’Kelly Memorial Library is scheduled to celebrate its grand opening on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. The event is expected to include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, guest speakers, refreshments, giveaways, family activities and a performance by magician Ken Scott.

For Loganville Rotary members, the tour provided more than a construction update. It offered a look at how years of club fundraising, careful stewardship and commitment to “Service Above Self” will become part of a permanent community resource.

The room honoring Hansen and the Rotary Club, together with the preserved stained-glass window from the original library, will connect the facility’s history with its future and ensure that generations of visitors learn about the local vision, service and generosity that helped make it possible.