Mississippi Library Association

Grand Re-opening at Bay Library

The wait is over for customers of the Bay St. Louis-Hancock County Library as the 18,000 sq. ft. headquarters branch at 312 Hwy 90 in Bay St. Louis was formally re-opened Friday, January 29th at 4:00 pm. The grand re-opening ceremonies began at 1:00 PM with a special showing of the film, Mississippi Son, which documents local residents’ experiences with Hurricane Katrina. At 3:20, a special after-school puppet show by A Abracadoodle, with string marionettes, was presented in the new glassed-in children’s area. A formal ribbon-cutting followed at 4:00 pm.

The building, which suffered wind and water damage from Hurricane Katrina, has undergone an extensive renovation. All of the damaged sheet-rock, ceiling tiles, carpet and flooring have been replaced, and a new roof and HVAC system were installed. Many of the massive sheet glass windows in the library were also replaced and sealed, and both the exterior and interior received a new paint job. According to Library Executive Director Patty Furr, “This project has put our building back in tip-top shape, and we hope to get many good years of service from the beautiful new space.” Because of the damage from flooding, most of the library furniture was damaged, and a new light maple design was chosen to replace it.

The floor plan of the new space is completely different as well. “This new design is based on a bookstore model,” according to Furr, “Our library customers are telling us that they value both comfort and convenience in their library space. We have very comfortable lounge chairs, spacious booths where patrons can plug in a wireless laptop or read the paper, and a new ‘action alley’ with all of our newest selections right up front. Customers can stop in, pick out the latest DVDs, CD books and bestsellers, check them out and be on their way.”

A library café, which is coming in late February or early March, will offer different types of coffee, cappuccino, chilled juices and baked goods for the public to enjoy, and a new 24-person public computer center. “Our computer workstations stay busy all the time,” Furr continued. “We hope the new fully automated computer center will help lessen or even eliminate the wait time to use a library computer.” A new print management and PC reservation system keeps track of each customer’s time and logs each user off as their time is completed. Printing in both color and black-and-white will also be available for a nominal fee.

The new library space also contains the Margaret Hicks Shadoin children’s area which has been both enlarged and glassed-in to give children a larger space to enjoy and adult readers a much quieter space outside the children’s domain. “Our customers’ number one request on community surveys was to have a separate children’s area with sound buffering,” said Furr. “I believe that this new division of services will be an advantage for each age group.” The new children’s room features a fairy tale fantasy land call “Once Upon a Time in Bay St. Louis” which was funded with a grant from the Foundation for the Mid-South. It contains a full-size, very realistic Bay St. Louis oak tree, which doubles as a puppet theater; the façade from a typical Bay St. Louis cottage; a child-sized gingerbread house; and shelf ends that feature Jack’s Beanstalk and a larger-than-life Peter Rabbit and his carrot garden.

Library Board of Trustee Chair Dolly Lundberg comments, “We believe this new library space has something for everyone. We hope that the public will stop by and see the new space and sign up to get a library card to enjoy.”

The new library is open to the public from 9-7 on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, 9-5 on Wednesdays and Friday, and 10-4 on Saturdays.

Photograph by Mary M. Perkins

OFFICIALS CUT THE RIBBON re-opening the Bay St. Louis-Hancock County Library marking the completion of the Hurricane Katrina Repair Project. Pictured from left are Library Trustee Carroll Gordon; Library Foundation Board Member Toni Larroux; Library Trustee Sharon Alexander; Library Board Chairman Dolly Lundberg; Mississippi Library Commission Executive Director Sharman Smith; Hancock County Supervisor Steve Seymour; Hancock County Supervisor President Rocky Pullman; MEMA Deputy State PA Officer John Moak; Library System Executive Director Patty Furr; Bay St. Louis Mayor Les Fillingame; State Senator David Maria; Library Trustee Suzi Lee; Hancock County Supervisor Tony Wayne Ladner; Hancock County Supervisor Lisa Cowand; Library Trustee Stephanie McConnell; U. S. Congressman Gene Taylor; and Bay St. Louis Councilman Ray Kidd.

Photograph by Mary M. Perkins

More than 40 children attended the puppet show by A Abrakadoodle at the opening festivities for the grand re-opening celebration of the Bay St. Louis-Hancock County Library.

Submitted by
Mary M. Perkins
Public Affairs/Development Officer
Hancock County Library System

Entry Filed under: News
Posted on: February 2nd, 2010