LITTLE BOSTON — After more than five years, Laurie Mattson can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

The journey Mattson and the House of Knowledge staff have been on since 2002 has been a long one and they hope their April 29 fund-raising event will help the project chug to its final destination.

Providing the steam is an art auction and dinner called “Evening of Northwest Coastal Art and Dance,” hosted by the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe at 5 p.m. April 29 in the new tribal elder center and longhouse. Proceeds from the event will go toward construction of a new and expanded Little Boston Library within the House of Knowledge complex. Tickets are $50 and include a salmon and roast beef dinner, live and silent auctions and entertainment from the S’Klallam Singers and S’Klallam Youth Dancers.

The HOK is a four-building campus that includes a tribal longhouse, a career and education center, a new elders center and a new and expanded library. The longhouse and career and education center were completed in 2004 while the elders center opened in March.

Mattson hopes the April 29 event will bring in the last chunk of change needed to finish the library and complete the project.

“We’re actually hoping to raise about $20,000 just through the (auction),” she said.

The HOK staff is also waiting for final word from the United States Department of Agriculture, from which the tribe is seeking a $198,000 loan. Once that deal is finalized, the tribe will put the library project out to bid, with the aim of starting construction this summer.

Many local artists have contributed artwork to be sold during the live auction, including a hand-carved salmon statue, canoe, and loon bowl, six limited edition Native American design prints, a raven sculpture carved from stone and a canoe paddle with heron and eagle designs. The silent auction will feature gift certificates and items donated by local merchants, which were items that had not been part of previous auctions.

“I think people will enjoy the mix of things,” Mattson said, such as the Mariners tickets and Heronswood Nursery books and garden tour.

The new library, which will be located north of the longhouse and career and education center, will be 3,895 square feet and will include more book shelf space, a teen area and a children’s area. The main reading room will consist of a study room and computer stations, plus comfortable chairs situated near a fireplace for patrons to relax. There will also be a large meeting room and restrooms.

The building will be constructed with a traditional wood framing system, with wood plate trusses, similar to the system used in the career and education center. The exterior will feature tight knot cedar siding, dark anodized aluminum windows and metal roofing. The project will also include new parking directly adjacent to the building, including a drop-off lane for building access near the north entry.

The three previous auction events hosted by the tribe have raised more than $70,000 for construction efforts for the nearly $5 million House of Knowledge project. Other funding has come from grants and donations.

After organizing its fourth event, the group is getting a handle on how to put together a successful fund-raiser, Mattson said, which could be a tool by the tribe for other projects, such as creating a veteran’s memorial.

“We’re getting to know a lot better how to coordinate and manage all the different parts of it,” she said. “I think every year it gets easier.”