The Greenbelt Library reopened to the public on Tuesday, January 21 for the first time since renovations, including recarpeting, shelving replacement and the addition of new furniture, began on November 25.
More than a dozen patrons congregated outside the main entrance of the facility, which is part of the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, in the minutes before the doors were unlocked. Several of them said they had frequented the library prior to its temporary closure.
Greenbelt resident Ron Roundy commented, “I’ve always looked at their books and magazines – what magazines they had; they don’t have every magazine–but,when I had my TV fixed, I sought out a lot of their good, free rentals for the DVDs. I caught up on a lot of stuff I missed. And the internet access is nice.” During the renovations, Roundy said that he began going to the New Carrollton Library, which previously underwent renovations in 2018, and the Hyattsville Library which moved to a temporary location in 2017.
Other patrons, such as Greenbelter Annie Shaw, also explored alternate locations. “I tried Laurel and they have a beautiful building, beautiful grounds, not a whole lot of books, but a lot of space with a lot more computer stuff, though,” Shaw said. “Then I went to Beltsville because that is actually quicker than Laurel.”
According to Area Manager Luis Labra, all Greenbelt Library staff members were able to work at other branch libraries during the renovation period, and the several staff members who were temporarily reassigned to the Beltsville Library “reported they saw a lot of Greenbelt people go there, and the activity level at Beltsville definitely went up.”
Once inside the newly-renovated library, patrons are treated to an updated children’s section which now features shelves with leaf-patterned end panels, and a refurbished main section of the library which features new, striped carpeting and new shelves with striped end panels.
Compared to the new shelves, the old shelves were noticeably taller, leaving some patrons worried that some of the Library’s book collection had been lost to the renovations.
“I don’t really get it,” Greenbelter Susan Harris said, regarding the renovations. “I need to study it to figure out what the advantage is. I have yet to explore to see if things I look for are any easier to find than they were.”
However, Michael Gannon, chief operating officer for Support Services, said that the renovations did not result in a reduction of books on display. The changes, he said, were only to make the rows feel less claustrophobic and more accessible.
“We actually didn’t lose any linear shelving,” Labra affirmed. “If you had seen them before, we weren’t using the top units because they were too high. So, with these (new shelves), actually, what we found was that it was pretty easy to put stuff back.”
According to Labra, a company had been hired to put all of the books on mobile shelving carts, wrap them and move them downstairs for the duration of renovations.
“The hard part was just labeling everything, and measuring everything, and making sure everything could go back smoothly,” Labra said.
The renovations were completed just in time for the Library, which officially opened in 1970, to take advantage of the occasion to celebrate its 50th anniversary, Labra said.
According to the online events calendar, a celebration featuring refreshments, displays and much more will be held from 1 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 7 at the Greenbelt Library.
Michelle Siegel is a graduate student in journalism at the University of Maryland reporting for the News Review.