Community feedback sparks ideas for new Clovis Library

Fresno County Public Library officials and community members meet at Clovis Police Department’s meeting room on Jan. 24 to discuss what they would like to see in the new Clovis Regional Library to be build on Clovis and Third avenues. (Ron Sundquist/Clovis Roundup)

A new Clovis Regional Library is in the works that will set the standard for future libraries and Fresno County Public Library held a Stakeholders Community Engagement Session – the first of multiple meetings – on Wednesday to receive input from the public on what it would like to see in a new library.

“This was just an initial start to hear initial ideas and get people to think and generate new ideas,” said Kelly Landano, FCPL Librarian. “This will germinate over the next few days, weeks. We’ll have at least four or five more of these [meetings] and we’ll build on them each time.”

Landano got the session going with a presentation on FCPL’s vision for the new library followed by an open discussion with members of the public and local officials in attendance.

Here are some of the recurring ideas those in attendance said they would like to see in a new library:

  • Art galleries
  • Historical artifacts
  • Flexible multi-purpose spaces for community and private events
  • Reading nooks
  • Bicycle racks
  • Patio area/outdoor seating
  • Outdoor performing area/amphitheatre
  • Docking/charging stations for electronics
  • Interactive spaces for teens and children
  • Kitchen area for community use/cooking classes

The library is set to go next to the Old Town Trail in a new civic center on Clovis and Third avenues, alongside a Senior Center and a transit hub. With 36,045 square feet of land space to work with, the library will take up about 30,000 square feet, which will more than triple the size of the current library of 8,600 square feet on Fifth Avenue. When it’s all said and done, the Clovis Regional Library will be the largest in Fresno County.

“I want the new library to reflect the personality and the energy of this community,” Landano said regarding her vision of the new library. “From a librarian’s perspective, teens and youth are always going to be very important to me. So, I would like to see an interactive space for teens and children. I’d also like to incorporate opportunities and programs to promote success in school and civic responsibility. There are building blocks all the way through our lives and I’d really like to see us meet those kind of needs to create a literate, responsible and civically engaged society. That’s really what I would like to see.”

Sources say the library is expected to be completed by late 2019 or early 2020.

A native of Woodlake, Daniel Leon is a recent graduate of Fresno State with a degree in Mass Communication and Journalism. Daniel served as Sports Editor at The Collegian, Fresno State’s student-run newspaper, prior to joining the Roundup. Got a story idea? Email him at editor@clovisroundup.com