Renovations at the main library branch in Roanoke are well underway now, with completion expected and a grand reopening in November. Next up is a three million dollar renovation of the Raleigh Court Library, which will double in size to almost 14,000 square feet.
At a community meeting earlier this week and at a Raleigh Court Civic League meeting before that, local residents weighed in on what changes they would like to see – and what the city had in mind.
Director of Libraries Sheila Umberger said preschool and children learning areas both in the remodeled main library and at Raleigh Court are part of the mix. “We’re really excited about that,” said Umberger. Residents had a chance to meet with the architects – HBM, the same Ohio firm that designed Roanoke County’s Glenvar and South County facility – at the workshop earlier this week.
“We want a lot of feedback – we’ll be prioritizing what features are important to the community for that branch,” added Umberger. Construction should start later this year. “We’re very busy…but good busy.” Among the feedback she heard at the Civic League meeting: a community space, perhaps with a self-serve café was requested.
“Raleigh Court is a very close-knit community and a lot of people like to have a place that they can gather,” said Umberger. Teenagers from adjacent Patrick Henry High School were looking for services that would interest them. Taking better advantage of natural lighting was also suggested, perhaps with higher ceilings where possible. “That’s still all in the planning stage,” said Umberger, “and we were very happy to have the feedback.”
Meanwhile other branches have been picking up some of the slack with the main library closed (except for the Virginia Room, designed for research and still open by appointment), with circulation almost doubled at some of the system’s branches. “We’re sending a lot of staff out to the branches to do programs as well,” said Umberger, who expects the Raleigh Court remodeling to begin some time this fall.
By Gene Marrano