RCPL Executive Director David Warren, South Carolina Representative Nathan Ballentine, Friends of RCPL Representative Susan Mazur, Richland County Councilman Bill Mallinowski and RCPL Board of Trustees Chairman Rox Pollard officially opened The Link, Ballentine on December 4.
RCPL Adds Innovative New Location to Rapidly Growing Community
The Richland County Public Library in Columbia, S.C. opened its 11th location—The Link, Ballentine—to a crowd of more than 150 children, teens and adults on December 4.
The highly anticipated facility features popular reading and children’s collections as well as a number of technologically advanced services, including wireless Internet access and a video reference system that allows users to see and speak with a reference librarian at the Main Library’s General Reference and Business, Science and Technology Reference desks.
With a statewide property tax referendum limiting local funds for libraries, this new facility was made possible because the Friends of RCPL matched a $65,000 Library Services and Technology Act Grant. This support allowed RCPL to increase services in the rapidly growing Ballentine community in Northwest Richland County, an area that was served only by a Bookmobile.
“The video conferencing technology, which has been adapted for commercial efforts but not widely used to date in public libraries, allowed us to utilize current staff at the Main Library to provide personalized reference services,” said RCPL’s Executive Director David Warren. “Maximizing current resources, including staff and the numerous materials in several formats now available through our Web site, allows us to enhance services to a more remote area of our community.”
RCPL also worked with a local architecture firm to carry out its Build Green philosophy by refurbishing and reusing several aspects of the rented, storefront facility including furniture, shelving and concrete floors.
In December of 2006, naturalist and avid library supporter Rudy Mancke fulfilled a childhood dream of driving a bookmobile when he guided RCPL’s Bookmobile along its final journey to be parked at the future library location, where it nearly tripled its circulation.
For more information on The Link, please call 803-929-3440 or visit www.myRCPL.com.
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