Nerdapalooza

The new library is open! The new library is open!

I stopped by an hour or two after it opened, and it was packed. Lots of adults and children showed up for the grand opening to check everything out (sorry, bad pun). They were welcomed by a live band, clowns, balloon animals and homemade cookies. It was definitely the place to be on a Saturday morning. It was great to see so many children excited to check out books, though they may have been hopped up on sugar cookies.

The new library is bigger, in a better location, and has lots of high and low tech improvements. Where the old library was more of a pickup spot for books on hold, the new one is set up more as a destination. There are more computers and meeting rooms, larger teen and children's sections, as well as a reading area with comfy chairs and a fireplace. One of the high tech improvements are the state-of-the-art book return machines. Each book is scanned so your account and their inventory is updated immediately, and the books are carried to stocking carts, saving employees hours of lifting and sorting books.

Green features of the building include: Natural lighting from banks of windows and skylights; native-plant landscaping and rain gardens; pavement that is porous to let water percolate through it; roof gardens to reduce heat loss and water runoff; and a geothermal energy element, which heats and cools the building using the earth’s energy. Makes ya green with pride.

Now if our town could just get a post office, we'd really be on the map.