New features at the West Carrollton branch of the Dayton Metro Library will help broaden the site’s reach when it reopens after more than a year and a nearly $4 million expansion, local officials said.
The location inside the West Carrollton Civic Center at 300 E. Central Ave. will host a grand reopening Monday to spotlight a 5,000 square foot addition featuring a 75-person capacity community room and several technology upgrades.
“We obviously have all the things a library has always had that are beneficial, which is books, computers and access to the Internet and the library’s databases,” said Jayne Klose, the library system’s community engagement manager. “But I think it’s now much more a community gathering place — a community resource for meetings (and) enhanced program space.”
A larger children’s area and dedicated space for teens are part of the renovation that began in September 2017 and increases the library’s size by 50 percent, Klose said.
RELATED: West Carrollton library branch to shut down for expansion work
Library officials are “looking forward to reconnecting with our regular patrons, and meeting new patrons,” according to branch Manager Karen Findlay, as they unveil amenities catering to a younger clientele.
Among those features will be TeenEDGE with a Nintendo Switch gaming system, and mobile audio/video equipment and editing software, according the library system.
The $3.88 million project includes a quiet reading room, a group study rooms, a fireplace and dedicated spaces for children and teens, as well as more parking, according to DML.
The West Carrollton site will also take part in Artwork in ReImagining Works. That program has already been installed at the Electra C. Doren, Miami Twp., Northwest, Brookville, New Lebanon, Kettering-Moraine, Vandalia and Miamisburg branch sites, as well as the Main Library in downtown Dayton.
The West Carrollton renovation is part of the metro library’s work in Montgomery County funded by a voter-approved $187 million bond issue in 2012. Nine other projects have been completed in the system’s Libraries for a Smarter Future facilities plan.
Monday’s reopening event will run from 3-6:30 p.m. It will include tours, West Carrollton first responders and their vehicles, library mascots, live music by Jim McCutcheon, library tech demonstrations and light refreshments, officials said.
Beginning Oct. 23, the branch will hold regular business hours. They include: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
NEW LIBRARY FEATURES
• 75-person capacity community room with professional-grade sound system and ceiling-mounted projector;
• Two, four-person quads and a 10-person conference room, each with 43-inch monitors;
• Quiet reading room and fireplace nook;
• TeenEDGE with Nintendo Switch gaming system;
• Mobile audio/video equipment and editing software;
• PC laptop and Macintosh systems lending;
• Three original art installations.
Source: Dayton Metro Library.
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