With specific areas geared toward kids and teens in addition to the traditional stacks, Kristen Huguley, campaign director for the Cedar Park Public Library Foundation, said the library was designed to feel like the community’s living room, not the solitary space that may come to mind.
“The library is the great equalizer, because everybody can start from the same place,” Huguley said.
The two-minute impact
The new Cedar Park Public Library has interactive play and learning space for children, teen spaces with study nooks, and around 230,000 items—physical and digital—for people to check out, Cedar Park Library Director Julia Mitschke said.
Mitschke said expectations for libraries have changed as technology has developed, noting the “shushing spaces” of yesteryear have been made more accessible. While the new facility was designed to keep up with modern needs and technology, there are still some dedicated quiet places for reading.
“Libraries have transitioned into being more of a community space where we recognize that learning happens in all kinds of ways,” she said. “Books are a very important resource, but a lot of people learn through either technology, multimedia resources or hands-on learning opportunities, which is where the library’s programming is so vital to what we do for the community now.”
The $40 million facility also has STEM-oriented makerspaces, containing resources ranging from sewing machines and arts and crafts to laser cutters and 3D printers, all available for free.
Though it’s been open for just over a month, the new library is two to five times busier than the previous one. The facility is designed to be the anchor of Cedar Park’s Bell District, a mixed-use district years in the making, Mitschke said.
How we got here
There’s been a recognized need for library space in the city since the early 2000s. In 2001, Cedar Park’s old public library was expanded. The community was much smaller then, and nobody knew how much growth there would be, Mitschke said.
Play-based and hands-on learning became more sought after. Additionally, the old library had run out of space to grow its collection, programming and other offerings, Mitschke said.
The new library also has multiple meeting rooms that people can reserve.
The road to opening:
- Nov. 2015: Voters authorize bond funding for a new library
- Jan. 2019: City Council provides direction to include the new library in the Bell District
- Dec. 2020: Council authorizes Lake Flato Architects to design the new library
- March 2021: Council approves J.E. Dunn Construction Group to build the new library
- Jan. 2023: Construction begins
- Nov. 2024: Library opens
Huguley said the foundation aims to amplify the impact of the library on the community. She noted the library puts people on an even playing field by providing access to Wi-Fi and technology that lower-income community members may not have access to.
The makerspaces give people a chance to learn skills, try hobbies and test ideas—opportunities that may not be available otherwise, Mitschke said. Additionally, the library’s “Library of Things” affords access to games, STEM-oriented kits, clay sculpting kits, camping cookware, crochet kits, projectors, metal detectors and more.
The library also has an outdoor playground, and the children’s section has a large dedicated play area along with various colorful activities, computers, books and more.
Morgan Rutledge, who visited the library with her 15-month-old daughter Avery, said she was looking forward to its offerings.
“I’m pretty excited for her to grow up doing story times and then when they start doing chess night, art night, things like that,” Rutledge said.
The library regularly hosts events, such as story times for various age groups and makerspace orientations, with the goal of community building.
Makerspace offerings:
- Laminator
- 3D printers
- Metal stamping kit
- Laser cutters
- Heat press
- Sewing machines
The total cost of the library was about $•40 million•. Funding came from the city’s general fund, utility fund, community development corporation funds and other sources, said Daniel Sousa, Cedar Park’s community affairs assistant director.
There were no land costs for the building, Mitschke said, as the city already owned the property. Cedar Park will repurpose the old library for recreational and community use, she said.
Mitschke said the makerspaces, children's spaces and collaboration rooms have been the most-used resources at the new facility.
Zooming out
The traffic brought to the area by the library is expected to fuel activity in the city’s incoming Bell District, which will eventually be filled with local restaurants, recreation and retail.
The backyard of the Bell District, which will be developed close to the library, already has a playground set up. It will be the heart of the Bell District, according to the website, and it will have 16 acres of green space with trails.
Ashley Grzywa, project director at Lake Flato, the architecture firm that designed the library, said a top goal for the library was that it would be the defining feature of Cedar Park; it would be what comes to mind when people think of the city.
“The library is the community porch—much like a porch on your house, it’s a place of gathering. It’s a public welcoming space where you meet people,” she said.
