What you need to know:
- The Matsu Valley Rebuild nonprofit is seeking donations for a new tool-lending library that will allow residents to borrow equipment for home projects instead of buying it.
- The library will operate on an income-based membership model ranging from about $25 to $100 per year, officials said. Late returns and lost or broken tools will incur additional fees. The library will open to users once enough equipment has been collected to stock it.
- Organizers are currently accepting tool donations and looking for volunteers to help grow and maintain the library. The facility is located on the Mat-Su Valley Rebuild property in Palmer.
PALMER — Organizers of a new Mat-Su lending library are gathering donations of items that might look out of place among the stacks of books housed at a traditional public library: tools.
Overseen by the nonprofit Matsu Valley Rebuild and operated out of a shed on the organization’s property near Palmer, the tool lending library is intended to serve as a community resource, giving residents a way to complete home projects without buying tools they may use only a few times, officials said.
“The idea is, first and foremost, it’ll save people money so they don’t have to go buy a tool that they can’t afford,” said Tim Zalinger, who runs the nonprofit and manages the store. “But also, it saves people space in their shop, even if they can afford all the tools in the store.”
Users will be able to check out tools for a week at a time, Zalinger said. He hopes to stock the library with a wide variety of donated equipment, ranging from power tools to a concrete mixer, and is currently gathering items in hopes of opening it to users in the next several months. A full list of requested tools is available on the organization’s website, he said.
For now, inventory inside the small blue tool library is sparse -- the scattering of miscellaneous tools includes a pile of shovels, a drywall lift and a drain snake. Zalinger said he expects donations and inventory to increase as word spreads and residents unearth tools to give away during spring cleaning.
Zalinger said he hopes the project also helps bring the community together around shared needs.
“There was a time when we shared tools — when everyone didn’t have a 10-foot ladder that they used once a year,” he said. “So the idea is not just to save people money, but to get people thinking about community and how resources can be shared.”
Zalinger plans to operate the library using an income-based membership model, he said. Users will pay between $25 and $100 per year to check out as many tools as they want. Membership fees will help cover operating costs and tool maintenance, he said.
As with traditional book libraries, checkouts can be renewed if no one is waiting in line, he said. The system will also charge late and replacement fees to encourage timely returns, he said.
Anyone interested in learning more or making a donation can stop by the Matsu Valley Rebuild facility during regular hours: Wednesday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. Donations are accepted until 4 p.m., according to the organization’s website. Zalinger said he’s also looking for dedicated volunteers who love tools and want to help organize or maintain the program.
Matsu Valley Rebuild is located at 12151 E Palmer-Wasilla Highway in Palmer.
-- Contact Amy Bushatz at contact@matsusentinel.com
This story has been republished with permission from the original at the Mat-Su Sentinel.
