Skylab is now in place as the Prince George Public Library's centre for user-friendly technology, and it's only the start of changes to come.
From technology to esthetics, the library is shifting gears with its next expansion project, the Knowledge Garden.
To be located on the northeast side of the Bob Harkins downtown branch, adjacent to the Civic Centre, the garden project will eventually create an enclosed green-space oasis made up entirely of plants that grow in a northern B.C. climate.
"It's about beautifying the library and providing a safe space for people to read and relax, and we intend to wire that up so people can use their laptops there as well," said chief librarian Allan Wilson.
"It will be outdoors and gated, so parents can have their kids playing there and see it from the deck. It will expose the [east-side] windows so people can see and keep an eye on their kids, and they can enjoy reading in a nice environment."
The Knowledge Garden could also be a revenue-generator. Wilson said there will be opportunities for private functions or weddings, and donors can have memorials placed in the garden. It will serve as a low-maintenance base for the library's outdoor storytime activities, which now suffer logistical problems for staff as they take place at eight different city parks.
The library already has half of the $150,000 budget needed to build the garden and has paid for the architectural design. Groundwork is scheduled to start later this summer and planting will begin next spring.
A 2007 study pegged the cost at $28.9 million to expand the library's downtown branch to more than double its current 38,000 square feet of useable space by enclosing its large, rarely-used wraparound decks. While that pricey project is on hold, Wilson wants to proceed with a plan to rework the library entrance, an improvement identified as the top priority in a survey of library users.
Currently, the most-used entrance is in the underground parking area, originally planned as a freight entrance when the building opened in 1981. There's also a walkway entrance off the main check-out area connected to the Civic Centre that also leads to a set of outdoor steps down to the Civic Plaza. Each entrance requires a security gate.
Also in the works is the creation of a mobile library to serve the community. Similar to the bookmobile concept used in other cities, Wilson wants to develop a method to move library materials to people who lack access to a neighbourhood library, especially in the College Heights area, where 26 per cent of the city's population is now concentrated.
The library currently has about 52,000 regional users, and more than 1,100 per people day visit either of the two city branches -- downtown and the Nechako branch in the Hart area.
