Grand reopening: Archer Library Branch will showcase improvements this weekend
The Archer branch of the Alachua County Library District (ACLD) will host a grand reopening Saturday to showcase its new and improved features.
The new additions come with the expansion of the Archer branch, which will now house over 15,000 volumes of materials. The building has been undergoing renovation and partially closed since Feb. 21.
Multiple new rooms were added to the library, including a Quiet Reading Room, a Children’s Area, a CreateSpace, a new Teen Zone, an expanded meeting room and two study rooms.
A custom mural painted by Ari Uberti, a Gainesville artist, will be featured in the Children’s Area. This area will also hold all the children’s books, centralizing them in one location.
“We are excited to reopen the Archer branch and share with the community this new and expanded library space,” Shaney T. Livingston, ACLD library director, said in a prepared statement. “The addition of the Children’s Area, CreateSpace, and Teen Space will greatly enhance the Library Districts ability to better serve the needs of the Archer community. The staff is excited to have everyone attend the Grand Reopening this Saturday. We look forward to many great years of providing quality library services for the Archer community.”
The renovations have resulted in the branch almost doubling in size – the building grew from 3,421 square feet to 6,313 square feet.
The renovations and additions cost a total of $1,010,541.86. The county received outside funding for the project: The non-profit Alachua County Library District Friends of the Library donated money for the Quiet Reading Room and the statue inside it, while the Alachua County Library District Foundation gave money to help with creating the Teen Zone, CreateSpace and the Children’s Area and its mural.
“There’s been an interest in the Archer community ever since we started the idea of an expansion there,” Brad McClenny, ACLD public relations and marketing manager, said in an interview. “I think that it’s going to impact a lot of people because they didn’t really have these extra spaces there at the library where they could utilize before. Now, everybody’s kind of got a specific [area].”
Also on Saturday: At The WELLness Network to host wellness fairs monthly in Gainesville
The Archer branch opened along with the Newberry branch, which also doubled in size during renovations in 2015, on the same day in 1993. The grand reopening of the library branch begins at 10 a.m. and there will be a ribbon cutting as well as self-guided tours to celebrate and showcase new additions.
Livingston; Cynthia Chestnut, ACLD governing board chair and Gainesville city commissioner; Dr. Sulmarie Duncan, ACLD board of trustees chair; and Iris Bailey, Archer mayor, all are scheduled to speak. The Archer branch is located at 13266 SW State Road 45, Archer.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Archer Library Branch grand reopening Saturday
