Grove City Library

In October 2016, Grove City Library opened the doors of a beautiful new building and welcomed the community into an open, vibrant environment designed to provide a functional, safe and flexible space to customers for years to come. The community responded enthusiastically to the opening of the new building — the library saw an uptick of over 1,500 new library cards registered in November 2016 over November 2015!

Grove City Library, a member of the Southwest Public Libraries, was founded in 1917 by the Women’s Civic Club of Grove City. Southwest Public Libraries is the second largest library system in Franklin county, serving more than 130,000 people over 127 square miles.

Assistant Director Bethanne Johnson manages the daily operations of the library and helped oversee the construction of the new building. She graciously provided our tour of the space and pointed out key design features, including modular furniture equipped with power outlets, new meeting spaces, study rooms and a dynamic youth service department. Johnson, who has been with the library for 32 years, helped to oversee the redesign and relocation of the library. She shared that she loves her job, the people she works with and the people she serves. She enjoys the community and the opportunity to share in the lives of her patrons.

The library’s new design succeeds in keeping books as a key feature of the space.  Bookshelves are abundant, but do not interrupt the open feel of the library.

The versatile meeting room can seat up to 400 guests and is ideal for hosting summer reading programs, community events and special programming like the Military History program. The meeting room, as well as many of the study spaces feature state-of-the art technology, including smart boards and projector screens.

Harper’s Grove, the youth services department made possible by a generous gift from the family of the library’s first librarian, Irene Harper, is cleverly designed to reflect the library logo’s tree theme. The space incorporates work and play areas for children and parents of all ages. Learning centers are integrated into the collections to create a fun space for playing, discovery and literacy.

The library partners with and provides space for a wide array of community organizations, including Scholastic Book presentations, the Summer Scribblers writing program, Grove City Writers Group, school programs and civic organizations.  The library’s new location in the Grove City Town Center puts it at the heart of many community events. The library participates in Arts in the Alley and the Town Center Christmas Parade and hosts a holiday event featuring Santa Claus and the Signs of Christmas chorus.

Cbus Libraries Co-Founder Andrea Dixon grew up with and worked for Grove City Library.  The library’s transformation of space, thoughtfulness of design and generosity of services are an amazing improvement and wonderful gift to the Grove City community.