Chesterfield families who've been without their neighborhood library since January will have to wait about another year — but the replacement will be significantly larger, with amenities no other branch in the system offers.

Construction on the new Guy and Judy Jaffe Family Branch began in February at 16400 Burkhardt Place, where the former Samuel C. Sachs Branch stood for more than two decades. St. Louis County Library expects the new building to open in early 2027, according to the library system's official project page.

Patrons who had holds at the Chesterfield branch can pick them up at the Thornhill Branch while construction continues. SLCL has not announced a specific opening month beyond "early 2027."

How It's Being Paid For

The project carries a preliminary budget of $10 million, according to FOX 2. The City of Chesterfield is committing $6 million in downtown TIF (tax increment financing) revenue, and donors Guy Jaffe and Judy Schwartz Jaffe contributed $1 million. The branch is named in their honor. The library system has not detailed the source of the remaining roughly $3 million.

Bigger Building, New Amenities

At 20,700 square feet, the new library will be roughly 5,000 square feet larger than the branch it replaces. Designed by Lamar Johnson Collaborative, the building is shifting to a new position on the property where it will connect with an existing outdoor reading garden.

Planned features include a children's area, a dedicated teen area, a larger community meeting room, eight study rooms, an outdoor patio, and a fireplace, according to SLCL.

The standout addition: a Goshen Coffee Café inside the branch — the first coffee shop in any St. Louis County Library location. The café will serve a full coffee menu along with food, pastries, and library-related merchandise.

What Library Leaders Say

Kristen Sorth, director and CEO of St. Louis County Library, called Chesterfield "one of the fastest growing communities in St. Louis County" and said the expanded branch will meet rising demand.

"The Guy and Judy Jaffe Family Branch will offer so many amazing amenities for this community," Sorth said in the library's announcement. "We are delighted to have a Goshen Coffee Cafe inside the branch."

Guy Jaffe and Judy Schwartz Jaffe said the project reflects their family's deep ties to the library. "Guy's mother was still going to the library until she was 95 years old," the couple said.