By WESLIE STRATTON
Moapa Valley Progress
The Las Vegas-Clark County Library District is preparing to host the grand opening of Mesquite’s new library on Thursday, May 31 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The new facility is located at 121 W First North Street.
The new building is part of what the library district is calling the Mesquite Library Campus.
“It’s been on the board for a long time,” Executive Director Ron Heezen said of the 13,313 square foot new building.
Heezen said that it was brought to his attention that the old building was not big enough to meet the needs of the current and growing community, even after one expansion.
According to Heezen, the new building was approved just as building costs were increasing in the region. So the city of Mesquite assisted by sharing the property with the library district, he said. The 1.6 acre parcel was previously church property that was purchased by the city.
Heezen said that building plans had to be shrunk three times to adjust to increasing building prices. But the finished product was designed for expansion as needed to accommodate future needs of the city.
“It’s a creative piece of architecture that will be a model for libraries…throughout the state,” Heezen said.
The old building located across the street will continue to be owned and operated by the library district as a learning center, according to a district press release. It will house a public computer lab, classrooms and a One-Stop Career Center “providing employment and education services for adults” run by Workforce Connections of Southern Nevada.
Together the new library building and learning center make up the new Mesquite Library Campus, Heezen said.
According to the release, the Mesquite Library Campus rolls out a new kind of library that is part living room, part learning lab. The campus is geared toward building literacies in language, technology and job skills.
“This new library was built on a foundation of new ideas, imaginative use of space and exposure to a variety of learning experiences,” the release stated.
The new structure will include an extensive collection of books in all formats as well as digital resources, free access to public computers and WiFi, expansive online homework help and courses, classroom instruction in English, learning experiences that connect locals to new resources and technologies, one-on-one expertise for job-seekers and entrepreneurs, a café with a drive-up window and beautiful new civic spaces to meet-up, exchange ideas, celebrate and perform.
According to the release the campus also caters to the needs of community youth with the addition of children’s inside and outside play areas and dedicated teen spaces.
The grand opening will feature activities and events for patrons of all ages including music, face painting, dance performances, crafts, refreshments and more.
