Fulton County broke ground on its new Metropolitan Library Wednesday in southwest Atlanta.

The 25,000-square-foot library is scheduled to open next summer. It will replace the Stewart-Lakewood branch.

The Metropolitan Library is one of eight new libraries the county is building as part of a $275 million bond issue approved by voters in 2008. The county recently opened its new Wolf Creek library. Fulton also is building new libraries in Alpharetta, east Roswell, Milton, northwest Atlanta, Palmetto and southeast Atlanta.