By JAMES BELL
Hays Post

The Hays Public Library will host two stakeholder sessions to solicit input from the community to consider future services and events at the library.

Both sessions will be held on Monday, June 10. The first will begin at 1:30 p.m., the other will begin at 6 p.m.. The sessions are scheduled to last 90 minutes.

Brandon Hines, library director, said the sessions are an effort to develop ideas for ways the library can continue to develop as a community center.

“When I was hired on, we had a lot of projects we had already begun or had been discussed. They were teed-up and ready to go, so we set up a one-year plan to execute on quite a few of these,” Hines said. “We are kind of getting to the point now where we are wrapping those up so we need to transition to that next phase, and we know that we need to get some outside input.”

Some of the completed projects include a new digital sign located on 13th and Main, and the new RFID checkout system.

With the completion of those previous projects, now is a good time to consider services and features the community wants from the library, Hines said.

“We have many high-level ideas, but we really want the input from the community to help us hone that focus for the space and our services in general,” he said. “We see this as a three-year plan that will come out of this. We have our mission and our values established, and the idea now is to generate those specific actions we can take to uphold our goals.”

A large part of the changes Hines wants to see is better utilization of the layout of the library, noting major design changes have not occurred since the renovation that added a wing to the building and a new facade.

“So much has changed since then,” Hines said.

The reference section has transitioned to mostly digital, freeing room that could be utilized for other purposes.

“We know we want to recapture that space,” Hines said.

There are also more computers than are currently needed. At one point, there was a normally a waiting list to use a computer in the adult section, now many sit unused through the day.

“They don’t need to come to the library anymore because they can check (email) on their phones,” Hines said.

While Hines said input from the community will be important, they have some ideas for the space in mind, including smaller quiet rooms that could be used by patrons for a variety of purposes such as job interviews, proctored testing or phone calls.

Hines said another idea being considered is some type of a business center, with a coffee bar or a community space where people can be comfortable and engage with others.

“We are really lucky with the amount of space we have. That is not our problem, we just need design help right now is the way we see it,” he said.

Overall the goal is to create a library that continues to remain relevant in an ever increasingly digital landscape.

Events throughout the year help to keep traffic coming into the library, Hines said, with most focusing on literacy.

“We have probably the best events programming library in the state and probability beyond,” Hines said, driving an average of 450 people into the library daily. “The amount of programming we have drives our traffic at this point.”

RSVPs for the meetings are requested, but not required, and can be sent to [email protected].