Newly expanded Fayetteville Public Library ready for reopening

Photo by Todd Gill, Fayetteville Flyer

A little over eight years ago, Fayetteville Public Library executive director David Johnson stood near the window on the south end of library looking over the shuttered City Hospital building, and told us about the library of his dreams.

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Soon, much of the vision Johnson laid out all those years ago will come to fruition when the newly-expanded facility officially opens to the public.

Johnson said the library is set to open sometime early next week, with limited capacity and social distancing measures in place. He can’t wait for everyone to see it.

“One of the things I’m really anticipating is seeing the delight in the expressions on people’s faces,” Johnson said. “The little kids. The returning patrons. It’s very special, and that’s something I’m looking forward to, just seeing those reactions.”

The expansion is impressive. The facility includes over 100,000 square feet of space, including many of the amenities that Johnson was wishing for shortly after he took over the job nearly a decade ago.

That vision has changed and evolved over the years, but Johnson said that’s how it is in his line of work.

A new staircase leads from the original building into the new facility. / Photo: Todd Gill

“We have held the community’s needs as our north star,” Johnson said. “Some of those needs have changed since we started this process, but if you pursue those needs vigorously, you’ll be right in the sweet spot.”

That change will likely continue, he said, but he said he believes the library is up to the challenge to adapt as the community grows.

“That is the thing that is cool,” he said. “Everything changes, and communities, as they grow and/or retract, their needs, their desires, the things they are seeking for quality of life, they change. I think what we have built with this expansion is going to allow us to change and be flexible as the community changes.”

Mayor Lioneld Jordan, who worked on the campaign to pass the millage for the project, said that a strong library can provide opportunities for those in the community that might not otherwise have them.

“I saw somewhere a quote that said a library is like a well, but you have to bring your own bucket,” Jordan said. “That is what it is. This library is going to level the playing field for so many in our community. It’s going to allow people to go to the library and educate themselves.”

Jordan said the library has been an important part of Fayetteville for years, and the new and improved version is just going to add to that experience.

Art & Movement Room / Photo: Todd Gill

“I will tell you this, if you are going to have a world class city, you have to have a world class library,” Jordan said. “And we’ve got a world class library.”

Fayetteville Public Library Board President Rob Qualls backed up the mayor’s claims.

“You know, library staff toured some of the best libraries in the world to put together this expansion, and they did a really good job taking some of the best ideas they saw out there,” he said. “Our library will have some of the best amenities, and really a combination of amenities that no other library in the world has.”

Qualls said as a board member, he’s toured the library multiple times over the course of the expansion’s construction. Each time, he said, there was so much to take in he felt he needed to start over again to absorb it all.

“You know, our capital campaign was called Beyond Words,” Qualls said. “When I first saw the expansion, that’s exactly what it is. You really need to see it in person to convey the enormity of it.”

A community hub

The facility, paid for in part by a $26.5 million millage increase approved by voters in 2016, is packed with more amenities than we can mention in a single post.

We’ll do our best to hit some of the high points, though.

Children’s library / Photo: Todd Gill

There’s a newly expanded children’s library that includes sections for pre-schoolers, elementary school kids, and teens. The children’s library area includes a new facility for storytime events with glass windows so parents can see inside. There’s also a new craft room for kids to explore their creativity.

Hanging overhead are antique aircraft on permanent loan from the Arkansas Air Museum to help further stimulate imaginations, with around 32,000 square feet of books for kids to peruse and enjoy. There’s space for strollers, and two comfort rooms for nursing moms.

The newly created teen area includes thousands of books for young adults, graphic novels, and more, with seating areas for study groups and socializing. There’s even a teen-only area, and a gaming room with a large TV for esports and other gaming options. The teen room includes large west- and south-facing windows that provide views of the new Fay Jones woods area now under construction as part of the city’s Cultural Arts Corridor.

The library also includes a new 8,300-square-foot performance space, with enough room for around 700 people to take in a performance in theatre-seating, or 500 people in banquet-style seating, or around 1,000 people in a standing-type setting. the space can host author talks, guest speakers, theatrical shows and musical performances.

The possibilities with the event space, Johnson said, are endless.

Christina Karnatz, director of development and marketing, and Lauren Headley, marketing assistant, stand in the event center during our tour. / Photo: Todd Gill

“Wouldn’t it be cool to produce something like Prairie Home Companion or Austin City Limits there?” he asked. “Think of all the authors, dignitaries or politicians we could bring to the community. Wouldn’t it be great to partner with TheatreSquared, and put on a theatrical production of a well-loved book? We could have TED talks. What if we put together a cultural arts festival that’s a rival of South by Southwest?

“We could bring in a chef like Guy Fieri, or Crescent Dragonwagon to introduce her new vegan cookbook,” he said. “When I am walking through this space, I’m thinking that imagination is the only limitation. If you can imagine it, the library is going to be in a position to make it happen.”

There’s a 16-station teaching kitchen that will be utilized by students of FHS, Brightwater, NWACC, and others, that can also be reserved by residents or rented for cooking classes and other purposes. The kitchen can also be used as a catering kitchen for the performance hall.

The library will include a new art and movement room, which will provide a home for all things performance art, and will also be rentable for movement classes like yoga, tai chi, barre, and others.

There will be a cafe and deli, with affordable sandwiches and other fair for hungry patrons so they won’t have to leave the library to grab a snack during story time, for example.

There are 22 new study rooms, and new meeting spaces, though those will not be available at first due to the pandemmic.

Teaching kitchen / Photo: Todd Gill

There’s a new grassy “gathering glade” outside, sponsored by the Hunt family for get-togethers, performances, and outdoor story time.

You want books? The new space will also make room for around 100,000 additions to the library’s physical collection.

“Around the country, demand for physical items has decreased, but that is not the case here,” said Christina Karnatz, the library’s new director of development and marketing & communications, who gave us a tour of the facility this week. “People in Fayetteville really like their books.”

Center for Innovation

Another exciting addition to the expanded library is the Center for Innovation, though it won’t quite be finished when the library re-opens next week. The area will include a robotics lab, a flight simulator, a CAT simulator offering training on equipment like backhoes, earthmovers, and forklifts for real-life workforce training.

The innovation center also includes a professional-level audio recording studio that can be reserved by local musicians and technicians. A video editing studio is also being built alongside a photography studio and a computer lab. Plans are also in the works for checking out podcasting equipment kits for those who don’t have access to their own tools.

Audio recording studio / Photo: Todd Gill

The library plans to offering training on the equipment, including some certifications when necessary.

Nearly all of this will be available to use, free of charge, to any resident who wants to come to the library and learn a new skill. Those wanting to charge admission for classes or for-profit businesses will need to pay a rental fee for some uses.

Reopening

Of course, the library won’t be the bustling place it is sure to become upon first reopening. Due to the pandemic, the facility will initially offer limited capacity, with only around 200 people allowed inside at a time.

The library will only utilize the main entrance at first to allow for monitoring of that capacity. Sanitation efforts will be increased, and events, story times, speakers, and more will remain virtual for the time being.

Johnson said even though the pandemic will limit the fanfare around the initial opening, he believes it’s important to return the library to the community as soon as possible.

“We really do feel a responsibility to get it back open, and let the community have their library back,” he said. “It isn’t going to be the grand opening celebration that we want to have, but believe me, we’ll get to have that party with the community as soon as it is safe and appropriate.”