In fall 2021, the new Winter Park Library and Events Center opened its doors to the public. Formerly on New England Ave, the new building in now located on West Morse Boulevard. Even though construction began in March 2020, the idea of a new library had been talked about for at least a decade, as the old space had been outgrown.
“We had simply outgrown the library and our collection,” teen librarian Lisa Blue said. “Every time we got a new book into the children’s collection, we had to take an old book out, there was no room for growth. That was just true all across the board for adults, teens, tweens, and kids.”
The old library dates back to the 1970s, and it was not compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act, along with the fact that it didn’t serve the needs of a library today.
“If you were in a wheelchair, there would be no way you can navigate the entire library based on how it was built, and it just wasn’t as usable as this current library, which has a lot of open space,” Blue said. “A library is a space where the community gathers, they seek out information and knowledge and each other. The new library is definitely a space where people can come, collaborate together, and create things.”
This library includes many new features such as countless rooms for meetings, multiple programming options, a hideout for teens, an auditorium, and overall a bigger space for collaboration and exploring.
“We are able to offer study rooms and collaboration rooms, so the tutors, who would take up the tables in the teen area, kids area, now have a space,” Blue said. “Even students have a quiet space to study and I really like that because it was constantly a need in the old library, that we just could not provide for.”
The library has been a place where several groups and clubs meet, such as the Teen Advisory Board (TAB) and the Teen Book Guild. The new building has only made group meetings easier.
“Even though it’s the same group, there are actually a lot more people that are coming,” TAB member Zachary Cohen said. “I think it’s because the library is a little more accessible and it’s completely renovated and modern.”
According to Blue, who works a lot with the different teen groups, the new building just overall helped bring the community together, as the space is more flexible and allows more clubs and groups to gather.
“In the old library, there was no green space for us to do those things,” Blue said. “We were stuck inside or in the parking lot, which is not a safe space to have an event. Now we are right up next to a park, and have all that green space.”
According to Trinity Director of Library and Information Science Lee DeGroft, there is usually no standard for renovating a library, and it is usually done based on the exisiting condition of the building. DeGroft believes that there will be many benefits that come with the new library.
“I think it’s brought a lot more attention to the library,” DeGroft said. “People take their public library for granted and it’s given them a lot more of a sphere, in the community and people are interested and want to check it out.”
According to Blue, this new library space is truly important for the community, and has only plans to grow and expand in the future.
“Since we’ve opened the doors in the new library, the number of people that come into the library has only gone up and I feel like that’s going to continue, as people see all the resources that are available to them in the new building,” Blue said. “It’s all about being a community resource, we want to not just provide books, if you want to check out a fishing pole and a fish in the lake that’s right next door, you’ll be able to do that eventually. We created the space to allow access to information in all different kinds of ways and other people in the community.”
