395 Terrace Bay, ON Public Library

The Terrace Bay library is about five years old and shares the building with a senior center--very convenient for the seniors.

Inside the entrance there is a program room to the left and a meeting room to the right. A pair of built-in display cases held depression glass in various colors. Beyond this are a circulation desk and office on the right and a glass-walled computer lab with seven computers on the left.

Beyond the computer lab is a bright, windowed area for preschool children. I like the unusual chair shown below; it looks as if it could hold an adult with armfuls of kids sharing a picture book. In addition to books there is a computer for children's use, a collection of DVDs and VHS tapes, and a bulletin board that says "Don't Bug Me, I'm Reading." Beneath the bulletin board some manipulatives are mounted on the wall; one of these allows little kids to move wooden "bugs" along tracks, picking up the theme of the board above.

All the way back on the left I found the very pleasant fireplace room, with a gas fire burning in an especially attractive fireplace. This space includes newspapers (on sticks, my favorite based on youthful experience putting papers onto sticks as a library page), a couple of study carrels, and a table with a good reading lamp and page magnifier. The door on the right in the picture leads to an archive room.

Across from the fireplace corner is space for school-age kids and teens. It's main feature is a padded bench that forms a long L-shaped seating area. A table in front of this bench held a couple of coloring books with boxes of markers. Coloring is very "in" these days in the States, but this is the first time I've seen it in a Canadian libary; I'll bet the kids enjoy it as much as adults do; perhaps even more!

I like the Read-Alike poster that suggests: If you liked The Hobbit (grades 7-12), Hunger Games (grades 8-12), Along for the Ride (grades 9-12), each followed by a list of other titles or series you might enjoy.

One unusual feature that I haven't seen in any other library, though it's common in airports, is the design of the restrooms, with curving entrances rather than doors, thus avoiding the need to touch doors on entering and exiting. I wonder why more public facilities are not designed this way?

I had a good chat with the librarian, who pointed out that the entire library color scheme is based on the colors of the nearby lake. She was surprised that a law officer, who had taken exception to my lack of response to the slower speed limit as I entered his town, had not issued a ticket. Nope, I got off with a warning and a smile, for which I am mega-grateful.

http://terracebay.library.on.ca/

5/17/2016