Weymouth Libraries ask kids and teens to help design new library for community

Weymouth, MA – Mayor Robert Hedlund announced today a challenge for kids and teens: help design a new library for Weymouth. Plans to construct a new public library are currently underway, and the Town wants to hear from local youths about their desires and ideas for the new community space.

“A new library would serve residents for generations, but it’s kids and teens who’ll have the real chance to experience and engage with the building throughout their lives,” said Mayor Robert Hedlund. “Who better to ask about what they want from a new library than those who can benefit most from it?”

Weymouth’s Library Design Challenge asks youths in grades K through 12 to model or design their own library or library space in any way that they choose. Libraries can be real or imaginary and can be sketched, painted, drawn, sculpted, or engineered using any tools youths have available to them, such as crayons, crafts sticks, or even computer software.

The Library Design Challenge will end Monday, October 24th, by which time all “model” libraries should be dropped off at the Tufts Library by 5:00 pm. All design submissions will be displayed at a grand unveiling and reception held at the Tufts Library on Wednesday, October 26th at 7:00 pm. For help on getting started, the Tufts Library will host drop-in sessions on the first, second, and third Wednesday of October (5th, 12th, and 24th) from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Youths that drop in will find fun materials to work with and can share ideas and questions with library staff for inspiration.

"While we hope kids and teens have fun creating new libraries, they should know that as we did with the Library Building Program, the Library Construction Committee and the Town’s architects will be looking for ideas and inspiration that can be incorporated into Weymouth's new library," said Director of Library Services Rob MacLean.

The Library Design Challenge is a part of a larger public participation process which is critical to the work of designing and constructing a new library in the community. Today’s libraries are people-centric environments and vehicles for community gathering, collective learning, and individual self-improvement. The cost of constructing a new library, however, requires the assistance of the Massachusetts Public Library Construction Grant Program. Plans to submit a grant application are currently underway, and any public input collected through the Library Design Challenge and other outreach strategies will be incorporated into the application’s proposed schematic design plans.