Mandel Public Library of West Palm Beach: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox library |
{{Infobox library |
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| library_name = West Palm Beach Public Library |
| library_name = West Palm Beach Public Library |
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| library_logo = [[File:NYPL Logo.svg|230px]] |
| library_logo = [[:File:NYPL Logo.svg|230px]]<!--Non free file removed by DASHBot--> |
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| location = West Palm Beach, FL |
| location = West Palm Beach, FL |
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| established = 1895 |
| established = 1895 |
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Revision as of 05:05, 28 October 2010
| West Palm Beach Public Library | |
|---|---|
| 230px | |
 | |
| Location | West Palm Beach, FL |
| Established | 1895 |
| Collection | |
| Size | 174,663 items |
| Access and use | |
| Population served | 103,150 |
| Other information | |
| Budget | $4,547,999 |
| Director | Christopher Murray |
| Employees | 46 |
| Website | http://www.mycitylibrary.org/ |
West Palm Beach Public Library
Overview
The West Palm Beach Public Library is the public library of the City of West Palm Beach, Florida. West Palm Beach is the largest city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The Library serves the resident population of the City of West Palm Beach (103,150 estimated as of 2009)[1] and members of libraries in the Palm Beach County Cooperative through resource sharing. In the 2009 fiscal year (October 1, 2008 – September 30, 2009) the Library circulated 759,897 items to 89,774 registered card holders, representing an increase of 19% over the previous fiscal year.[2] During that same year, the library welcomed 546,631 visitors.[3] The West Palm Beach Public Library will issue a free library card to anyone who lives, works, learns or plays in West Palm Beach, with presentation of photo identification. In April 2009, the library relocated into a new facility in City Center in the heart of downtown West Palm Beach. The new facility at 411 Clematis Street is 2.5 times larger than the previous building.
History
The West Palm Beach Public Library has the distinction of being the oldest public library in Palm Beach County, Florida. It began as the Free Reading Room for the City of West Palm Beach, located in the Union Congregational Church at the corner of Datura and Olive Streets. In 1895, Commodore Charles John Clarke, a Palm Beach yachtsman, donated a two-story former Palm Beach Yacht Club building to West Palm Beach. The first city library was purchased with a collection from book lovers passing the hat for the Reading Room and a $100 donation from Henry Flagler.
On January 26, 1924, the City’s first permanent library, an artistic Spanish style building, opened alongside the Woman’s Club and a band shell in Flagler Park, facing the Intracoastal Waterway. In spite of severe damage from the 1928 hurricane which left more than half of the books destroyed and two feet of lake water and mud on the floor, the Memorial Library remained open, serving the residents of West Palm Beach, until spring 1962.
On April 30, 1962, a new city library designed by architect Norman Robson, was dedicated and opened with much flourish and public comment over its modern, colorful, exterior frieze panels. The name of the library at 100 Clematis Street was changed to the West Palm Beach Public Library. It was planned to allow for expansion for at least twenty years.<ref>
Facilities
On April 13, 2009, The West Palm Beach Public Library opened in its present, state-of-the-art facility at 411 Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach. The new library is nothing short of spectacular. The library is stunning and exceptionally functional. Reactions from the public have been overwhelmingly positive with many comments such as, “I’ve never seen a library as beautiful as this!”
The first floor is always bustling with people browsing 50 categories of new books, books-on-CD, Playaways, periodicals and the Book Sale items. People can stop at the library café for a quick bite to eat. The first floor is also where library patrons can pick up their self-service holds, check out books at the self-check stations or return books to the self-return kiosk.
The second floor, which incorporates both the Technology and Teen area, is also brimming with life. It has 34 PCs in the common area, a teen section with another 4 PCs and an impressive collection of graphic novels, video games, all of the adult and teen music CDs and DVDs, and a computer training lab that seats 24. Due to the high demand for additional PCs, the lab is open for the public when no classes are in session. This floor also contains a demonstration space with projector, screen, and speakers to show a variety of software applications, DVDs, and anything else that might expand people’s knowledge of technology. There are also “future” spaces for 6 digital audio/video studios and a smaller 12 seat computer training lab intended for digital photography or smaller computer classes. Wi-Fi is available to the public, free of charge, throughout the library and City Center.
The third floor is a combination floor. It has KidSpace, the Meeting Room suite, and Library Administration offices. The KidSpace is a spectacular space unlike most other library Children’s Departments. There are a lot of interactive spaces, a Homework Help area, a parenting collection with comfortable adult seating close to the toddler area, and bookshelves in a sunburst arrangement. Then there is the “Bubble Wall Desk”! A mirror-backed bubble wall was designed into the front of the KidSpace service desk and the children literally run to it from across the room when they enter the room.
Our meeting room suite, also on the third floor, has a 150 seat auditorium with theatrical lighting and an excellent projection and sound system that can accommodate movies, theatrical productions and live music events. It also contains a 50-seat meeting room, a large conference room that holds 16 and a small conference room that holds 8. The two larger meeting rooms are equipped for audio-visual demonstrations. These rooms are available to the public for meetings or other types of gatherings when not in use for library programs.
The fourth floor is the Grand Reading Room. Nearly the length of a football field, it is 270 feet long with a 35-foot high barrel-shaped ceiling that gives it a sense of grandeur. Decorated in an elegant yet relaxed Florida style, it contains the library’s adult book collection, a plethora of reading tables equipped with laptop plug-ins, 50 public PCs, the historical Florida, and two group study rooms. The library has the much needed room to grow the collection in a place that makes the citizens proud to live in their city.
The new library has been a tremendous success. Since the library opened, circulation is up over 50% and adult program attendance is up over 80%. The public has responded extremely well to the new self-service model and are pleased with the efficiency of the self-checkout and self-return system. The public PCs are functioning without a hitch and in August showed a 65% increase over August 2008. In a recent survey of library users, 48% responded that they have used the library for help in finding a job. The City Center Library has become the crown jewel of the city and will enhance the lives of its citizens for many years to come.
The West Palm Beach Public Library is staffed by a total of 46 full-time employees. An additional 3661 volunteer hours help to maintain the library’s extremely high standards of public service. The library’s total operating income is $4,547,999 derived from local municipal funds ($4,417,630) and state funds ($98,050).5 The West Palm Beach Public Library is a member of SEFLIN - the Southeast Florida Library Information Network consortium, the Palm Beach County Library Cooperative, and the SEFLIN Sunshine Library Card program, in addition to actively participating in Interlibrary Loan exchanges of materials to enhance resource sharing capabilities for the public.
Recognition
The library was a second place winner for its Staff Training Wiki of the 2008 Innovative Interfaces “Be Innovative! Award,” in the Most Innovative Staff Program category. The Ask a Librarian Annual Report 2008-2009 lists the West Palm Beach Public Library among its “Top 10 Public and Special Libraries.” The West Palm Beach Public Library currently enjoys the distinction of being included on NFI Research’s list of the “Top Public Libraries on Twitter,” in 41st place in the nation, in the “1000+ Followers” category.6 The library’s “Let’s Read” program was short-listed for a National City Livability Award. The library has been awarded numerous grants for programs, including a Library Services and Technology Act grant, a Quantum Foundation grant, American Library Association and Nextbook Foundation grants, and many others.
Events and Activities
The West Palm Beach Public Library provides numerous programs, classes, lectures, interactive experiences, training, and workshop opportunities which are very well attended by members of the public. Some of the library’s famous guest authors have included: Barbara Taylor Bradford, Daniel Silva, Jackie Collins, Senator George McGovern, James Patterson, and Nicholas Sparks. Each month, the library hosts 4 book clubs (including two led by the library’s own “Book Goddess”), a variety of computer training classes, bi-lingual events and outreach to the Hispanic community, French and Spanish language conversation groups, crafts activities, ballroom dancing, tai-chi, pilates, yoga, meditation, expert talks on health, aging, and finances, and various other popular programs. The library enjoys numerous community partnerships which enhance the library’s wide variety of activities. Among the numerous and varied children’s and teen events are the very popular “Dog Tales” with specially trained therapy dogs that will “listen” to a child reading and gaming and animation workshops The “Let’s Read” program provides specially trained volunteers to read stories to pre-kindergarten through grade 2 children in four local schools. In Fiscal Year 2008-09, program attendance for children’s programs alone totaled over 25,200. The library promotes programs through a variety of social media including Facebook, MySpace, blogs, twitters (with the library’s own “Twitterbrarian”) and Library Currents newsletters.
Friends of the Library
The Friends of the West Palm Beach Public Library was founded in 1995 and was reconstituted in 2008 to support the new, expanded facility. The Friends organization is an involved, vibrant group of community library supporters dedicated to aiding and initiating library projects and programs. Membership offers the opportunity to share in creating, promoting, and nurturing a great library. Members receive The Friends’ newsletter Among Friends, early notice of registration for certain events, and opportunities to share their talents.7 Among the many well-received library programs sponsored by the Friends organization, notable examples include the Friday Night Jazz concerts, which have attracted over 350 attendees per performance, and the 92Y Live programs. Live from NY's 92nd Street (92YLive) is a live, satellite-broadcasted event that allows people all over the nation to access the Y's cultural and educational programs. The programs provide an opportunity for the audience to ask questions of the presenters, as if they were in the New York audience.8 The Library is truly a community gathering place.
Library Foundation
The West Palm Beach Library Foundation, a 501(c) 3 organization and independent from the City of West Palm Beach, was formed to support the West Palm Beach Public Library. The Foundation, free of any political process or influence, will secure financial and in-kind donations to enhance programs, services, collections and technology that the city’s reasonable operating budget can not encompass.9
More than just an institute of learning, the West Palm Beach Public Library impacts the community with its passionate, involved librarians, outstanding collections of books, DVDs and music, state-of-the art technology resources and an array of community activities and interesting programs. With the support of the Foundation, the library has been able to expand its multitude of enlightening program offerings for the public.