spa Throngs of library patrons toured the renovated library during the grand reopening celebration.

spa The library's original front steps have been removed and the main entry lowered to sidewalk level, allowing access for all people.

Throngs of enthusiastic library patrons filed into the renovated Linden Hills Community Library on Saturday, May 18 to celebrate the grand reopening of their 71-year-old community treasure.

The library, with its 75,000 annual users, is such a vital asset to the community that the Linden Hills Neighborhood Council jumpstarted renovation efforts by investing $138,000 of NRP funds in the $2.3 million project. Renovation work on the library has resulted in the expansion of the amount of public service space, 18 new computers for public use and accessibility to all while still preserving the building's architectural integrity.

A number of amenities have been enhanced or added to the library as a result of the renovation. These include an expanded children's room with its own story telling alcove, a local history room that doubles as a conference room, custom wood work to match the original rich detailing, an enhanced entry plaza, and a selection of trees and other plantings to complete the landscaping. NRP dollars also funded a major increase in audiovisual materials and the addition of new collections on travel and neighborhood history.

The Linden Hills Community Library project was funded in large part through the City of Minneapolis' Capital Improvement Program with additional help from a State Accessibility Grant. The library renovation was completed ahead of the "Great Libraries for Minneapolis" program, made possible by Minneapolis taxpayers who are funding the new Central Library and a decade of community library improvements. By 2010, the program will bring all 14 Minneapolis libraries into the 21st century by "building new, restoring old, improving all."

For more information on the Linden Hills Community Library renovation project, please contact Chris Wiencke of the Minneapolis Public Library at 612-630-6259.

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