Kansas State Library moving outside

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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) -- Visitors to the Statehouse will soon have to walk outside to check out a book at the Kansas State Library.

The next phase of the Statehouse renovation will force the library to move from its location on the third floor of the building to temporary quarters on the Statehouse grounds.

Construction crews have assembled a new library in a modular building on the southwest corner of the building. It will be connected to the Statehouse by a covered walkway.

Renovation of the Statehouse, which originally took 37 years to construct, began in 2001. The library's portion is in the project's final phase, which includes the north wing of the building and a new visitors center. It is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2012.