142. SELCO--Red Wing, MN

The first thing I noticed was a storytime alcove that can be closed off from the rest of the library with folding walls. It has a single step down that creates a focus on the storyteller's chair and a long row of low seating for little kids. Very nice. Another part of the children's area has a large aquarium (a donation "in memory of"), a bright rug, a rocker, soft seating, and a window wall. Colorful fabric panels shade one section of windows.

I had to step back from the kids area to see the bright murals high on three sides of the wall; a staff person told me that they were provided through a grant. They're very attractive and lively.

This library has more children's periodicals than I've noticed  anywhere else; I counted 25 titles! Just about every children's magazine I've ever heard of is represented.

Art prints displayed on the library walls can be checked out for 60 days.

A lobby (not the way I entered) has restrooms, a city bus stop, and a public pay telephone. These are all indications that the library is, or means to be, the heart of the town.

Some other random noticings: There is a fantastic model of the HMS Victory on display. The youth section has "diner" seating. Signs marking parts of the non-fiction collection stick out over the aisles almost like street signs; this is hard to describe, and I haven't seen anything like it before. There is a reading garden with a couple of adirondack chairs. There is a dedicated computer for downloading e-books, a shiny copper roof that looks new, and a walker with a basket for patrons who need it.

The circulation and reference desks are combined in the center of the library. A staff member told me that they believe in cross-training and blurring the lines between categories of staff. Nice.

1/7/2013   car