Wilmington library reopens after renovations

Students from Kuumba Academy Charter School were among the first to see the changes and attend a magic show the library hosted as it welcomes the community back inside. 

The reviews are positive and foot traffic is steady at the Wilmington Library,  which officially re-opened its doors to the public on Tuesday after months of renovations. However, most of the excitement seemed to be in the Children’s Corner of the library where space has been expanded to accommodate bigger crowds, and newer laptops and decorations captivate children.

Iyesha Huff of Kuumba Academy says she’s looking to bring her family back to the library after seeing the new look. “The new look of the library just can’t compare to the way the library used to look. People just have to come and see it. In fact, as soon as I get off work, I’m coming back with my family,” said Huff.

Jason Zerbey, a stay at home dad of two young boys is just as amazed because he visited the library right before it closed it’s doors for the $12-million renovation project.

“It’s really nice to see this right in the city. We often use the Brandywine 100 library and this is fantastic to be a little bit closer to this. I’m looking forward to using the services,” said Zerbey.

Wilmington library officials say they had the community in mind when the decision was made to reinvent the historic site and create meeting space for people to utilize as often as possible. Some of the rooms have already been booked for events. Zerbey plans to look into holding meetings at the library as well.  A profile of the new look-library was seen this week on First on WHYY-TV.

“As soon as we heard about the meeting rooms, my wife and I were thinking about our local civic association in the ninth ward. We have a nice meeting space but it would be good to use the city’s resources and support the library, so it’s definitely going to be useful to people I think,” said Zerbey.

Representatives from Gallaher Elementary School and the Delaware Readiness program also visited the library to see what resources they can take advantage of.

“It seems like a warm friendly place and I would come here,” said Theresa Arban who’s willing to travel from Newark to the library.

I think it’s wonderful especially in the city, just by the show up today, that’s great,” said Janice Wilson of Delaware Readiness, a Wilmington initiative to promote children being ready to come to kindergarten. Wilson says the library really fits into what the program is trying to do with community members.

The Wilmington Library has posted a number of activities and events for children and general public to enjoy. To check it out, visit the library’s website.