Minnesota: Two St. Paul Libraries Reopen With Bigger, Brighter Look
From The Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
After nearly a year of renovation work, St. Paul is reopening two of its anchor libraries with expanded areas for kids, more community meeting space and a lot more windows.
On Sunday, the newly dubbed Highland Park Community Center will open its renovated library and recreational facilities to the public with a program featuring speeches, music, presentations by the architects and refreshments.
A similar ceremony kicked off the reopening last weekend of the Sun Ray branch library on the city’s East Side.
The cost of the two projects was $13.5 million, with $7 million coming from the city.
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The renovated library is more than 40 percent larger than it was before. The additional space was added without a change in the building’s footprint.
Bigger spaces for teens and children emphasize interactive learning, Hadley said. There will be a single service point, combining check-out and reference functions, and more room for community meetings.
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Similar changes were made at Sun Ray, where more space was added for group and individual learning. A new glass wall on the south side created more interior space and allows for more daylight, Hadley said, and a public plaza and outdoor reading garden were added as well.
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See Also: Additional Info About the Libraries (Including Floor Plans)
About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.