A newly-renovated Ralph Ellison Library (2000 NE 23rd St.) will reopen on Monday, Dec. 14, after grand opening ceremonies are held at 2 p.m.The temporary location of the facility (at 1918 NE 23rd St.) will be closed on Monday, Nov. 30.
City Councilman Ronald “Skip” Kelly (Ward 7), Hugh Rice (chairman of the Metropolitan Library Commission), Donna Morris (executive director of the library system) and Michael E. Owens (manager of Ellison Library) will participate in the Dec. 14 ribbon-cutting ceremonies.
The $2 million renovation was paid for primarily with funds from the 2000 Oklahoma City bond election.
The meeting room in the old library was completely demolished and the new version has twice as much floor space.
The new room can be used as two smaller rooms or one large room to accommodate a significant audience, a statement said.
The number of public access computers with Internet connections has also been doubled in the new building.
“The building is now a 16,500 sq. ft. neighborhood facility,” Mrs. Morris said. “More functional space has been added for children and teens, and, of course, we kept our special Black history collection.”
Several libraries in the Metropolitan Library System have self-checkout stands, so that library customers can check out material without having to stand in line at the checkout desk.
The newly-renovated library will implement a “self-reserve pickup” system, allowing customers to pick up their own reserve material and check them out.
“It truly is a beautiful facility,” Mrs. Morris said, “with a more open floor plan.
“The extra space gives us room to expand services and the collection.”
The number of items checked out at Ellison Library increased in 2009 by 46 percent over the previous year, Mrs. Morris pointed out.
