When the doors opened at the new Westfield Washington Public Library June 1, director Sheryl Sollars knew the building at 17400 Westfield Blvd. was set to be a true community hub.
But the turnout at the grand opening and during the first two months of operation has exceeded expectations, drawing in 3,000 visitors on Day 1 and resulting in 1,400 new library cards issued this summer.
“We typically, in the month of June, issue 400,” Sollars said. “I don’t think people knew where we were. And now they know.”
The east side of the new building is dedicated to more public areas while the west side has books, materials and the help desk.
“That was an intentional design,” Sollars said. “There are quiet areas and then there are less quiet areas. There is more gathering and common space. The large program room is great for bigger groups.”
Sollars said the space isn’t only clean and new, it’s more accommodating for patrons.
“It’s just more open and there’s a dedicated area for the kids to play, to do exploration play. It’s just a more active space. The coffee shop is an awesome addition to the library,” Sollars said. “All the little places that you can go, the tables and chairs and booths and study rooms. In the old library it was just tables in the center of the adult area. Now, there are places that people can go and explore.”
But the site is more than simply the library branch. The new building marked collaboration between the library and Westfield Washington Township, which occupies the western side of the structure. The collaboration includes everything from a new shared informational guide, Our Westfield Washington Network, to a staff member who works for both organizations coordinating scheduling and use of shared spaces.
Westfield Washington Township Trustee Jamie Goetz Mills said by statute, the township exists to assist those in need. But she said the office is there for a hand up, not a handout.
“Our No. 1 job is to assist the township residents in a time of need, whether that is to assist them financially from a standpoint of utility assistance, rent assistance or other assistance they might need to keep them from having their basic needs met,” Goetz Mills said. “The second part beyond that is connecting them to all the community resources. If you said, ‘What is our No. 1 role in our community,’ it is to assist our township residents. Number two is that we connect our residents with all of the resources in Hamilton County. We’re taxpayer funded and we connect people to all the other nonprofits.”
Goetz Mills said the township can sit down with those residents in need and find where they need the most help, then guide them to those options and opportunities, including food pantry assistance, education on budgeting and more.
“We’re here to help residents in the emergency stage,” she said. “We’re not a long-term solution. We meet them where they are, we solve their immediate problem and then we connect them to the resources to get them out of it. Then we provide education to hopefully keep them out of needing to come back to us.”
Goetz Mills said being next to the new library has increased awareness of the township and what it provides.
“People who already knew they had a need, if they did the research and they started talking to community members, they could find us,” she said. “But now there’s more awareness. Being next to the library significantly increases community awareness.”
The township also has partnered with Shepherd Center, Hamilton County Health Department, and fire and police for training sessions and certification programs for first responders.
“I think we have something for everyone,” Goetz Mills said. “I’m not just using that term because I think it’s slick to use. If you look at the offerings between us and the library, it’s everything from book clubs to sewing to crafts to Zumba and ballroom dancing. We’re really trying to touch people throughout the whole span, preschool to 55 and better. We want the community to come here and interact with each other.”
Goetz Mills said collaboration with the library is the best part of the new space.
“It’s going to challenge both of us to broaden, grow, expand and how we interact with the community,” she said. “We’re in the center of the action. Westfield is growing and expanding, and we are in the heartbeat of downtown Westfield.”
Sollars said for Westfield, the new building is a true community center.
“I think it’s just a place to be. It’s not just families or children. It’s busy every day. People are just excited to get inside,” Sollars said. “It’s just a great gathering place, a place to be with other people. We’re so isolated with computers, but the library becomes a place where you can meet your neighbors and talk to your neighbors or people you don’t even know. That’s what I look at the library as. It’s also the place where we have books and entertainment and computer access for people. We provide things for people. We assume everybody has a computer. Not everybody does. Or, if your computer or printer is broken, come to the library.”
The $17 million building project was funded via a build-operate-transfer bond and proceeds from the sale of the old library.
“There’s a lot going on program-wise, material-wise,” Sollars said. “Come and check us out.”
ABOUT 17400 WESTFIELD BOULEVARD
Westfield Washington Library has services for children, teens and adults. In addition to books and materials for checkout, the library offers games, recreation, outreach to seniors, crafts, groups, reading programs, a writers group and book clubs. The library also offers digital downloads, career building courses, genealogy databases and reference materials.
Learn more at wwpl.lib.in.us
At Westfield Washington Township, services include rent/shelter, utilities, food and medicine aid for residents who may be in an emergency financial situation; planning and zoning; weed control; burial Assistance; cemetery maintenance; and management of MacGregor Park.
Learn more about the township at westfieldwashingtontwp.us.
