"We sat in a million chairs," said Dolly Barnes, the library's supervisor, who was on the subcommittee.

The group—which included Barnes, Assistant City Manager Lorie Tinfow, Friends of the Saratoga Libraries volunteer Mary Jeanne Fenn, and Marcia Manzo, chair of the library expansion committee—put all the options to the test. In some cases they even had dealers send pieces of furniture to the temporary library, where they could be tried out by patrons.

"Our goal was for the furniture to be very functional and to look good, not only the day we opened, but also 10, 15 years down the line," Barnes said.

They struggled to identify a good, comfortable all-wood desk chair that would last longer than an upholstered type, settling on models that come in a variety of shades and that, on their backs, will have wood cutouts of trees and insects. They also hunted for light stacking chairs for the community room that patrons of all ages could put away with ease, eventually choosing chairs in colors of red and gray.

The group selected furniture not only for its durability and safety, but also with an eye toward giving the new facility a bit of pizzazz. No boring solids in basic colors for this public building. Instead, the group selected a broad variety of upholstery fabrics in a range of prints, with the help of CSR Design interior design consultants.

The inspiration for the choices—which include different styles of furniture for the different areas of the library—was the redwood paneling of the original library, which will be reinstalled in the new building, and the colors of the surrounding Heritage Orchard, visible through the library's windows. Distinct looks were also created to emphasize the building's different spaces.

In the entry to the building, then, one will likely find sophisticated pieces in warm brick and gold tones, but by the sunny windows, furniture in cooler blue colors. Chairs by the fireplace are intended to be more casual and homey in style, and furniture in the children's room could be in jewel tones, bright and whimsical.

Tinfow said her favorite pieces of furniture under consideration are colorful ottomans for the children's area that are in the shape of puzzle pieces and can fit together to create a larger seating or work space.

"I think there's probably something for everybody," Barnes said. "So far, everybody's been either very polite or very excited."

The Friends of the Saratoga Libraries, which is raising the money to purchase the furniture, has approved the subcommittee's choices, and the library expansion committee, which makes the final decision, reviewed the preliminary purchase list last month. After its second review this month, a purchase order will be made this fall so the furniture will arrive in time for the library's scheduled opening next spring.

The one concern of the city council, Tinfow said, is that the furniture won't belong to the city but to the Santa Clara County Library system, which receives the donation from the Friends. If the system pulls out of the Saratoga Library, or the city decides to pull out of the system, the city would keep the building but wouldn't necessarily get the furniture, she said. That situation isn't likely, she said, but is something the city is aware of.

Nevertheless, donations to the Friends to pay for the furniture purchase continue to come in, according to Friends volunteer Jim Givens, who is overseeing the organization's fundraising effort. It has about $193,000 to go to reach its goal of $1.1 million, and has received donations from more than 200 contributors. To add to those numbers, call Givens at 408.378.5644 or visit www.fslonline.org.