Ozark Living

By Karen Rice Ozark Living Magazine e newly reimagined Fayetteville Public Library is a portal to a world of inspiration and innovation. It seems wrong to call it just a "library." e word conjures images of stacks of books and solo contemplation, with librarians whispering "shhhhh." e newly expanded and renovated Fayetteville Public Library couldn't be further from that image. "is project has been in development for a long time, and it's almost hard to believe that we can now invite the community inside of our vision," said David Johnson, executive director of Fayetteville Public Library. "One of the main goals of this expansion is to encourage patrons to explore the full definition of literacy, and I truly believe that happens every time someone explores the space for the first time." e renovation, which broke ground in March 2019, and was completed in 2021, took what was already a world-class library into a vision of all a library can be—a gathering space, a creative hub, a wonderland of playing, learning and curiosity, a portal to personal growth, a skill-building center for a changing world. e library nearly doubled in size, expanding to more than 170,000 square feet. And within that space: a Fabrication/Robotics Lab, Culinary Arts Teaching Kitchen, A/V Production Studio, Photography Studio, Recording Studio, Simulation Lab, 23 study rooms, an art and movement room, a 700-seat event center, outdoor programming space and so much more. Walk through the doors and step into a place of imagination and inspiration. ink less "library" and more "launching pad" for discovering interests, turning those interests into passions and those passions into careers. Make no mistake, there are still plenty of traditional offerings. e collections have expanded, with thousands of new acquisitions of all genres. "Fayetteville still loves its physical books, and we've dramatically increased the number of new items," said Christina Karnatz, director of development. But just as books can transport us to other worlds, the expanded library takes us beyond the world we know into future possibilities. It's inspiring. It's interactive. It's innovative. e library takes a look at "modern literacy," and defined it as the way we learn about the world---beyond the printed word. At the newly expanded Fayetteville Public Library, your library card now serves as a passport to that world. Wander down the hall to the Art and Movement room, where you can attend a dance, yoga or creative art class. Visit the Children's Library, which has doubled in size, from 16,000 to 32,000 square feet. Real-life aircra suspended from the ceiling remind us that this is the place where little imaginations take flight. Separate pre- school and grade school areas are playfully designed to encourage investigation, with flexible, so modular furniture and materials within easy reach. A dedicated cra room and story time room keep minds and hands engaged in spacious, sunny, glass-walled spaces. Teens have their own hangout space here too, with comfy nooks for study, private spaces for groups, a gaming room and new ways for teens to rediscover how cool the library can be. Next up is the new Event Center, with 480 theatre-style seats, plus room for 200 more chairs and capacity up to 1000 total. It's a flexible space for summits, banquets, book readings, theatre and music productions and other events. e state-of-the-art control room features recording, broadcast and streaming Library of tomorrow 22 • June 2023 • OZARK LIVInG

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