The one-lane stretch of Sunrise Way between Baristo Road and Camino Parocela is due to reopen fully on Friday, November 13. The main library behind it won't. The city's estimate for the end of the driveway and median work is that Friday. The building at 300 S. Sunrise Way has a tentative reopening in Summer 2027. That leaves at least one more full season with Palm Springs' library spread across several addresses. The library's own annual figures show downtown, not the official temporary branch, absorbing the use.
That shift matters if you're planning a Sunday afternoon, a book return or a Thursday evening around the library this winter. The building on Sunrise Way has been closed since August 2025. The address that replaced it is still the one most people would think of first, but the numbers point somewhere else.
Why the roadwork ending changes nothing for the building
The lane closure has run since Monday, July 20, 2026. Crews have been building a new driveway and center median for the library parking lot as part of the Palm Springs Library Renovation Project. That's site work. The building itself is on a separate and longer timeline.
The early estimates were shorter. In July 2025, KESQ reported that renovation work at the original site was expected to finish by March 2026. A city notice that September put the grant-funded portion on that March 2026 deadline and said the overall renovation could take 18 to 36 months. The city's current project timeline on Engage Palm Springs, which it labels tentative, now reads:
- February 2027: estimated end of construction
- March to May 2027: construction close-out
- Summer 2027: tentative reopening
The most recent update came from Library Services Director Jeannie Kays at the Library Board of Trustees meeting on October 7. As The Palm Springs Post reported, she said she was optimistic the building could reopen in about a year, but cautioned against setting a firm date while construction continues. She also pointed to a step that's easy to forget. After the contractor finishes, staff need at least six weeks to move roughly 100,000 books back in, combine collections and reshelve them. If the contractor's current schedule holds, that move would fall in the summer heat and overlap the library's summer reading program. Rimrock is expected to stay open during the move, though Kays said both locations could close briefly if every staff member is needed for the transition.
Where the library actually lives this winter
The official temporary home is a 6,001-square-foot storefront at Rimrock Plaza, on the corner of East Palm Canyon Drive and Gene Autry Trail. The City Council leased it for three years in June 2025. The Sunrise Way building it stands in for is 35,000 square feet. Rimrock carries a capsule collection of select materials plus new arrivals, public computers, story times, Teen S.T.E.A.M. events, passport acceptance by appointment and a Friends of the Palm Springs Library book sale area.
Downtown, the Welwood Murray Memorial Library at 100 S. Palm Canyon Drive does a different job. It has Wi-Fi and public computers, a Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism location, and the Palm Springs Historical Society's Research Library, which you access through the Society. Its materials are for in-library use only, and it can't accept returns of items borrowed from the main library collection.
Then there are the pop-ups. On scheduled Wednesdays, a small library sets up at Mizell Center and at the James O. Jessie Desert Highland Unity Center. Staff take returns, sign up new cardholders, lend from a hand-picked selection and help with the Libby and Kanopy apps.
| Rimrock Library | Welwood Murray Memorial Library | Pop-up Library | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address | 4721 E. Palm Canyon Dr. #A | 100 S. Palm Canyon Dr. | Mizell Center, 480 S. Sunrise Way; James O. Jessie Desert Highland Unity Center |
| Sunday | Closed | 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. | No |
| Latest weeknight | Tue. and Wed. until 8 p.m. | Thu. until 8 p.m. | Daytime only |
| Borrowing | Capsule collection and new items | In-library use only | Small hand-picked selection |
| Returns | Home branch | Not accepted | Accepted during pop-up hours |
| Next dates | Mon. to Sat. | Daily | Mizell: Nov. 25 and Dec. 23, 10 a.m. to noon. Desert Highland: Dec. 9, noon to 2 p.m. |
Rimrock's full schedule is Monday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday and Wednesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Thursday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Welwood Murray is open seven days, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., except Thursdays, when it stays open until 8 p.m. On Sundays and Thursday evenings, the downtown branch is the only city library open.
The numbers show the shift downtown
The annual report presented to the Library Board makes the split concrete. Visits at the smaller Rimrock Library were down 60% compared with the main library. Welwood Murray saw a 25% increase in visits and a 78% jump in computer sessions over the previous year.
The 78% computer figure stands out most. Rimrock has public computers, so downtown didn't gain those sessions for lack of an alternative. It gained them while also being the branch with Sunday hours, a Thursday evening close at 8 p.m. and a location on Palm Canyon Drive in the middle of town. The arrangement is set to last at least through this winter, so where you go for each service matters. Borrowing and returns go to Rimrock or a pop-up. Computers, research and most adult programs mostly happen downtown.
The winter calendar, by location
Most adult programming that used to fill the Sunrise Way building now meets at Welwood Murray or partner venues. For November and December, the city's library event calendar lists:
At Welwood Murray Memorial Library
- Morning Coffee Book Club: November 18 and December 16, 10:30 a.m. to noon
- Nonesuch Nonfiction Book Club: November 19 and December 17, 2 to 3:30 p.m.
- Friends of the Palm Springs Library Book Club: November 20 and December 18, 2 to 3:30 p.m.
- Poetry Club: November 18 and December 30, 4 to 5:30 p.m.
- Film screenings: December 11, at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
At Rimrock
- Story Time / Hora de Cuentos: Thursdays at 10:30 a.m., including December 3, 10 and 17
- Weekly D.I.Y. Fun!: November 18 and 25, December 9 and 16, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m.
- Slime Lab: December 1, 5 to 7 p.m.
At Mizell Center and beyond
- Chinese Mah Jong Open Play at Mizell Center, 480 S. Sunrise Way: Wednesdays 2 to 4 p.m., through December 30
- OutBook Book Club at the LGBTQ+ Community Center of the Desert: December 2, 6 to 7:30 p.m.
The two biggest library events of the season are both at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. Pride on the Page runs Saturday, November 14, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., with Murray Hill at 4 p.m. and Ty Herndon at 6:30 p.m. Palm Springs Speaks brings Jane Wiedlin on Tuesday, December 8, from 7:30 to 9 p.m.
What the wait is paying for
The building opened in 1975 and is being stripped to its structure. Crews are replacing plumbing and electrical systems, installing fire sprinklers for the first time, upgrading other fire and life-safety systems, strengthening columns and beams for earthquake resistance, and rebuilding sidewalks that didn't meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards. As of the October report, drywall and insulation work was underway.
The additions are where daily use will change. The plans include maker spaces, a teen center and outdoor reading gardens. They also include a newly named Create Room, plus landscaping that adds a stormwater retention basin and a DeepRoot Silva Cell system for tree roots. Group 4 Architecture + Research is the design architect and Swinerton Construction is the contractor. Funding includes a $6.5 million California State Library grant matched with Measure J funds, and $30 million of the city's lease-revenue bonds is earmarked for the library. The Palm Springs Post describes the full effort as a $52 million project, with change orders totaling less than 1% of the budget as of October 2026.
So when the barriers come off Sunrise Way on or around November 13, the fenced building behind them will still be roughly a year from its tentative reopening. Until then, the library is Rimrock for borrowing, Welwood Murray for Sundays and computers, and Mizell or Desert Highland on scheduled Wednesdays for returns.
If you're weighing a home near Sunrise Park or downtown and want to talk through how the area works day to day, Lori Ebeling is glad to help. Schedule a 15-minute consultation.
