When staff at Koelbel Library began observing library patrons, they noticed a trend: Folks were hunkering down in comfy chairs with a good book and cup of coffee for large chunks of the day.
“It’s less transactional,” said Arapahoe Library District executive director Nicolle Davies. “People aren’t just coming in, getting books and leaving. They’re staying. Holding business meetings. Doing homework together. We want to encourage that and give the community what it wants.”
A $2 million renovation to the Centennial library is adding gathering space, a revamped children’s area, a small auditorium and a grander coffee shop along with general improvements to the 23-year-old, never-restored building, Davies said.
The renovation is about 60 percent complete, financed by a reserved fund set aside by library trustees.
“Koelbel is a really diverse community in that our patronage is from cradle to grave,” Davies said. “We have the tiniest of patrons sitting on laps for storytime all the way up to our seniors who are coming in for computer classes.”
To serve the kids, the children’s area is making separate spaces for younger visitors and older kiddos.
By keeping storytime sectioned off and including more nooks and crannies for older children to curl up and dive into a book, Davies is hoping to make lifelong readers out of the library’s younger patrons.
A small auditorium, the Forum, is being built for lectures, movies, music performances and community gatherings, Davies said.
The manager of community libraries, Daisy Grice, said the renovations are all inside the building. Areas that were previously reserved for staff are being handed over as new spaces for patrons to gather.
“We want to continue to provide a traditional library experience in an updated, contemporary way,” she said. “We’re still offering quiet study spaces, but we’re also balancing that with expanded community space.”
The existing coffee concession stand is being tripled in size, Grice said, to accommodate those who want to sit comfortably, sip happily and read.
“It’ll really be a coffee shop experience with the used bookstore that exists now integrated,” Grice said. “You can sit here all day whether you purchase a coffee or not.”
Louise Richey manages community partnerships at Arapahoe Library District and oversees the Arapahoe Library Friends Foundation that uses the Koelbel used bookstore to fundraise for the district.
The organization has five volunteer-run used bookstores throughout the district’s libraries that pull in about $100,000 for things like summer reading programs, Richey said.
“We’re really excited,” she said. “I think with the remodel, the cafe will be a focal point. The used bookstore will have a higher profile than we do now.”
The remodel is predicted to be finished in May, and areas of the library remain under construction.
“This is really amazing because I grew up in this neighborhood,” Grice said. “Being a part of this renovation is a wonderful way to participate in a community that I’ve been a part of for a long time.”
Elizabeth Hernandez: 303-954-1223, ehernandez@denverpost.com or
Updated Feb. 4, 5:00 p.m.. This article has been revised to reflect the following correction. Originally, due to incorrect information from source, the among of money raised from volunteer bookstores was wrong. The five stores raise $100,000 annually.
