Public input sought on next chapter of the Stanislaus library in Turlock

In the second year of an effort to greatly expand the Stanislaus County Library branch here, planners are at the point where they’re seeking input on what the public wants.

At a meeting March 25, David Crotty and Alan Bright from the San Francisco office of HOK, a global design, architecture, engineering and planning firm, will lead community members through a visioning process to guide the planning.

The library, at 550 N. Minaret Ave., needs to be roughly three times its current 10,000 square feet, said Friends of the Turlock Library President Jackie Oyer.

“We’re just bursting at the seams,” she said. “The children’s area is much too small; we need bathrooms for parents and children separate from general public. There’s a long list of things people need and want, and that’s kind of what the meeting is going to be.”

The current library facility has no dedicated meeting rooms or space for library programming, such as children’s story times and informational presentations for consumers, Susan Lilly, communications manager for the Stanislaus County Library, added in a news release on the meeting.

At this point, nothing is carved in stone and nothing is ruled out, Oyer said. One thing on which members of the library planning committee seem to be on the same page is that the current library location is ideal, and there is plenty of space on the property to expand, she said.

“If they did anything with the existing building, it would have to go through a total renovation to bring it up to code because it’s an old building,” Oyer said. So while renovating and building an addition is a possibility, so is tearing down the building and relocating temporarily while a new library is constructed, she said. “We’re just not that far along. … One big thing to consider is parking, too, especially when we have special programs at the library. There’s just a lot to consider.”

She said the hope is that at least 50 people will sign up to attend the March 25 meeting.

A few library patrons asked Friday had modest thoughts on what they’d like to see.

“Maybe more comfortable seats, because we spend three to four hours” on average each visit, said Dalbir Plaha, sitting at a table with two other men, all reading newspapers and other materials.

“I like it how it is. I like the kids section,” said 10-year-old Noah Cuarenta, reading and playing in that section with his grandmother, Carlene Smith, and his cousin Tiago Cuarenta, 19 months.

Smith said they try to get to story time most Wednesday mornings, but the day isn’t always the best. If the library changed up its story time schedule every so often, or added sessions, it would allow more people to attend, she said.

Chelsea Giffen, in the kids section with children Raleigh, 3, and Briggs, 8 months, said they visit each Friday.

“This is exactly what we love,” she said as Raleigh showed her superhero books before putting them in the storage area of Briggs’ stroller. Whatever Raleigh is into at the moment – pirates, knights, cowboys, superheroes – they find in abundance.

But “maybe more sensory toys, that would be fun,” she said. “I know it’s a book place, but they do love to play.”

This story was originally published March 11, 2017 at 9:48 AM with the headline "Public input sought on next chapter of the Stanislaus library in Turlock."