Family Gathering Area

Children's Lighthouse Area

Reading Deck

By Katy Ferrero, FNFL Correspondence Secretary

Barbara Jo German, Sue Peters, and I were graciously given a tour of the new North East Library by the manager, Heather Simpson. I just wanted to share a few of my impressions of the building.

You feel an immediate sense of spaciousness and light when you enter the lobby. Colorful displays of books serve as decorations. Wide corridors lead to community rooms and offices. The main downstairs space houses the adult collections, as well as work and training spaces.

Upstairs has a large children’s space accommodating toddlers to tweens. It has a separate teen space for middle and high school students. In between is a living room type area where families can read or play games. This library also has an outdoor space, and a cozy “sitting by an electric fireplace” room.

Cecil County considers this a “people” library. Its collections are comprised of newer materials. But just like our library system, materials can be ordered from other libraries within their county. This library took ten years to plan and there are some issues with staffing such a large space.

It is easy to be impressed with this library. However, it is important to realize that we need to focus on what features we want in our library that will serve our community the best. By visiting other new libraries, it will help us explore the possibilities.