Camarillo Public Library

Main entrance, The City of Camarillo Public Library

The City of Camarillo Public Library serves the residents of Camarillo, California. Camarillo Public Library will issue a free library card to any applicant with acceptable identification, as provided in the library's registration policy. Camarillo Public Library is located at 4101 Las Posas Road, on the corner of Las Posas Road and Fieldgate Drive.

History

• 1895: The first library in Camarillo consists of a set of readers in a hallway at Pleasant Valley School.

• April 8, 1915: Adolfo Camarillo speaks at a public hearing before the Ventura County Board of Supervisors in favor of establishing a countywide library system.

• January 6, 1919: Opening day of the Camarillo Branch of the Ventura County Free Library, with 75 books. It is located in Mr. Israel Hernandez's Camarillo Mercantile Company.

• 1920-1931: The library is moved to a room in the Conejo Inn, owned by Mr. & Mrs. F.B. Merrill who welcome borrowers anytime.

• 1931-1933: Mrs. Ruth Fellows offers her sun porch as a temporary library when the Conejo Inn goes out of business.

• December, 1933-April, 1941: Adele Flynn becomes Branch Library Assistant and moves the collection of 350 books to a cubbyhole in the post office and then to the Cawelti building. It is open for 2 hours on Mondays and Fridays.

• April 1, 1941 – 1962: The library is moved to a room in the new Community Center on Ventura Boulevard. The collection has grown to 8,000 books. The two most popular library books in 1952 are The Caine Mutiny and The Old Man and the Sea.

• May 18, 1962: A new branch is dedicated at Dizdar Park with room for 15,000 books, and a large reading area. Adele Flynn becomes the Children's Librarian and organizes storytimes, the annual summer reading program, and other events to attract children to the library.

• October 27, 1974: The library opens at 3100 Ponderosa Drive. Additionally, The Friends of the Camarillo Library is organized this year.

• 1974-2007: The computerized circulation system is installed in 1982, replacing the card catalogue. The internet center for public use is dedicated in January, 1999. The collection grows to 120,000 items that include video cassettes, DVDs, music CDs, audiobooks, periodicals, and books.

• March 31, 2007: The library opens in a state-of-the-art building at 4101 Las Posas Road.

• October 13, 2010: The Camarillo City Council votes to leave the Ventura County Library system.

• January 3, 2011: The City of Camarillo Public Library opens as a municipal library.

Architects

The library was designed by Charles Walton & Associates (CWA). The chief architect was James Nadini. Judy Van Wyk was the interior designer for the project.

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  Children's Room entrance
• 
  Non-fiction collection
• 
  Esper A. Petersen Foundation
  Study Center

Financing

The building was funded by a grant of $15,621,473 from the California Public Library Construction & Renovation Act of 2000 and $11,000,000 from the City of Camarillo. The Esper A. Petersen Foundation provided a $375,000 grant for the Esper A. Petersen Foundation Study Center.

Size

The current library location is four times larger than the old building that opened in 1974. The 65,621-square-foot (6,096.4 m²) building includes the Friends of the Camarillo Library Book store, Giant Steps Cafe, an Adult Literacy Center, the library community room, a board room, a conference room, a technology lab, five study rooms, and the Esper A. Petersen Foundation Study Center.

Books & Materials

For the opening of the new building on March 31, 2007, 40,000 items were added to the 120,000 items that had been housed in the previous building. In 2008, the collection grew to 176,000 items. Since opening as a municipal library, the collection has grown to over 209,000 items. The library also subscribes to a variety of electronic databases, which provide patrons with remote access to thousands of periodical articles, e-books, e-audiobooks, online music, and more. Furthermore, the library houses, on loan, the Ventura County Genealogical Society's reference collection.

Technology

The library has 54 computers that are internet accessible, wireless internet access throughout the building, and a technology lab with six computers. The library also uses RFID in concert with self checkout computers.

Artwork

The pirate ship, book columns, and all of the artwork was created by Scenario Design, Inc., who has also produced work for Disneyland. The plaques next to each of the works of art give information about the inspiration for the piece and the name of the artist. The California Mission style tiles were made by the California Tile Company. The fountain, tile "carpets", and peacock were inspired by 1930s era Malibu tile, seen at the Adamson House in Malibu.

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  Young Adult Room ceiling
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  Audio-Visual Room ceiling

External links

• The City of Camarillo Public Library Home Page
• The City of Camarillo Home Page