SHUTESBURY — A ceremony to kick off the construction of Shutesbury’s new public library, which will replace the 122-year-old M.N. Spear Memorial Library when it opens in fall 2025, is set for early August.

Library trustees and the Library Building Committee are holding a groundbreaking ceremony for the $8.98 million, 4,400-square-foot building on Friday, Aug. 2, at 10 a.m. at 66 Leverett Road, the future site of the library.

The event was scheduled after the Selectboard, during its June 25 meeting, signed a $6.39 million, year-long contract with Construction Dynamics Inc. of Clinton, the lowest of five construction bids received for the project.

Designs by Oudens Ello Architecture of Boston show a section for adults with a reading nook and a children’s section, both of which have seating and collection space, with significant natural light and an ability to close off the children’s room with a sliding door when privacy is needed.

There is also a smaller, dedicated teen area near the circulation desk, a staff work room, a director’s office, a lobby and a community meeting room, with overflow space in the lobby accommodating more people, which can be accessed separately from the rest of the building.

The process of getting a new library began when Shutesbury, competing with the town of Otis as towns with populations under 2,000, was awarded a $3.95 million Small Library Pilot Project grant in 2022. After that, $2.44 million in town spending was approved via Annual Town Meeting and a Proposition 2½ debt-exclusion vote.

Significant fundraising has also been done to ensure that all costs are covered, with the total price tag of $8.98 million — at about $2.5 million over construction costs — including the price of furnishings, site work and a public water source.

When the building opens about half a mile away from the current library on the Shutesbury green, it will bring to a close a long-running process to replace the M.N. Spear Memorial Library, a 768-square-foot building with no running water. The process included residents taking a ballot vote and narrowly rejecting a similar project in 2012.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.