The Mt. Healthy branch library is nearly ready to open its new location, but first, crews have to move thousands of books into the new space. The books don’t have to go far, just one block north on Hamilton Ave.
Library staff, Mt. Healthy leaders, employees from local businesses, and community members turned out Thursday morning to kick off the move by forming a “book bucket brigade” to move the first books in a human chain from the current location to the new one in a renovated former CVS store.
“The replacement of the Mt. Healthy branch was identified as a top goal in the library’s facility master plan, with the recommendation to relocate to a different facility for full accessibility,” said Paula Brehm-Heeger, the Eva Jane Romaine Coombe director of the Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library during the ceremonial book brigade.
Tana Weingartner
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WVXU
The library purchased the former CVS location shortly after its closure was announced. Brehm-Heeger says Mt. Healthy community leaders were quick to point out its ideal location.
“The minute this thing was maybe going to close, people were calling us, ‘Hey, you might want to look, I think the CVS is going to be leaving this building, and can you look at it?’ We immediately got a lot of response from Mt. Healthy because they had always been interested in keeping the library here, keeping it in this area.”
The new location takes advantage of the former pharmacy’s drive-up window, parking lot, larger interior space, and accessibility.
“The former branch, it is technically on street level, but it’s challenging to get in,” Brehm-Heeger points out. “[The new branch] has an entrance that allows people to walk right in from this great parking lot, and inside, overall, it provides more space and allows for accessibility.”
There’s also more space for a kids’ area, new technologies and service offerings, one large meeting area and several smaller ones, and — at 10,000-square feet — double the square footage of the old location.
Branch Manager Lacey Wehrle notes the Mt. Healthy library has been around for 125 years; and in its current location for 73 years.
Tana Weingartner
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WVXU
“As we open a new chapter in the new branch, we can look forward to the increased space, the technology, materials, parking and services. We will have more for our children and teens to explore and learn while connecting with others. We will also have more for our adults and seniors to enjoy — a nice reading area or private meeting space, and even if you can’t come in for the day, you can always visit us through our drive through and pick up your holds.”
Which books were selected to make the move first? The Public Library: A Photographic Essay by Robert Dawson; Meet a Librarian! by Annmarie Anderson; Work Better Together by Jen Fisher and Anh Nguyen Phillips; and, of course, a photographic history of town, Mt. Healthy by Sue Korn Wilson and Kathleen Mulloy Tamarkin
The cost of the new branch project is $6.3 million. A grand opening and ribbon cutting is scheduled for Nov. 2.
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