Main Library on Tremont in 1959, which was renovated once in 1973 and again in 1986.
The Main Library on Tremont after the 1986 expansion.
Dec. 11, 2017 marks a significant date in the history of the Upper Arlington Public Library. On this day, the library will celebrate its 50th birthday.
Celebrations began in May with the Wall of Honor for John Dunkle, the former mayor of Upper Arlington, who was instrumental in the opening of the library. Since the Wa
ll of Honor event, social media accounts from the library have shared old photographs of the library encouraging patrons to share memories. These photos are available to view in the library’s online archives.
“We put out storyboards for patrons at all three of our locations, asking them to write down some of their fondest memories from their times spent at the library,” says Library Director Chris Taylor. “It’s a fun way to get people to share how this library had an impact on their lives, and these will be on display at our birthday celebration.”
Alongside the official 50th birthday party, the library has launched “50 for 50,” a fundraising campaign geared toward raising $50,000 to create more group study spaces in the system’s adult sections, which has been a top request of patrons for many years.
“Fundraising helps us do the things that tax dollars aren’t able to do,” Taylor says. “It’s used for the things people want. Unfortunately, our funding from the state has been pretty flat since 2009, so we really hope to get a lot of people involved.”
The expansion project will serve an immediate need of the library, making it more accessible to high school students and increasing space in general.
“Libraries are at a crossroads right now to try and stay relevant, and in this day and age, I don’t think people realize our library has everything you want right here,” Taylor says.
Though growing in size has always been a trend of the library, the move into the digital age has been one of its largest ongoing projects.
“Libraries are at a crossroads right now to try and stay relevant, and in this day and age, I don’t think people realize our library has everything you want right here,” Taylor says.
Before Amazon ruled the world, before streaming services such as Spotify and Netflix gave us access to the latest releases in seconds, libraries were among the main sources for this type of entertainment. Sure, your local record stores or Blockbuster could get you that content, but the library had a similar collection and it was free to use with your library card.
The UA library recently launched its own streaming services, providing access to eBooks, music, movies and TV shows through a service called Hoopla that is accessible with a library card. The list of services offered continues to grow.
“You already pay for the library, so why not just use the library instead of paying for streaming services yourself?” Taylor says.
The overall success of the library, aside from updates, lies in its relationship with the community as a whole. Located in a predominantly residential area, the library partners with the city and Upper Arlington High School to serve as a hub for not only checking out books, but for entertaining the community as well.
“It’s the people we have here at the library that keep patrons coming back,” Taylor says. “All three of our locations are built on parks, so it does give families plenty of things to do as well as checking out material here. Bottom line, the community really loves spending time at this library.”
Rocco Falleti is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at jwise@cityscenemediagroup.com
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