Aliya Hall/The Creswell Chronicle
Book lovers in eastern Springfield, unite! The Springfield Library has officially opened two satellite return sites at Splash! and the Bob Keefer Center for Sports and Recreation for community members to return library materials.
”We’re looking forward to serving all,” library director Emily David said at the Book Drop event July 1. ”We’re very excited. Libraries mean a lot to people and it’s a big step. We look forward to people using it.”
The library has received multiple requests to extend services into east Springfield through the years, and with a donation from the Springfield Library Foundation, the library was able to provide those services.
”Springfield is evolving with the community,” Ward Five Councilor Marilee Woodrow said. ”A need was expressed and here we are. It’s important for the community to voice their needs and have them met.”
The locations were chosen because the facilities have a lot of traffic and are spread through east Springfield. Bob Keefer Center program manager Jennifer Holland said that David brought the idea to her during a meeting.
”We’re lucky to live in a community that values partnerships,” she said. ”We’re happy to be part of the solution.”
The project was made possible through partnerships with Willamalane Park and Recreation District, which allowed the City to install the book drops at two of its facilities; the City of Springfield Development & Public Works Department, which installed the book drops; and Eugene Springfield Fire, which will loan its courier service for a three-month trial of book retrieval and delivery.
Representatives from the Springfield Library Foundation, Willamalane Park and Recreation District, Eugene Springfield Fire and City of Springfield Development & Public Works were also present during the Book Drop event.
Woodrow recounted a description of her childhood library – an old house with the children’s section upstairs – and said the fact she can still remember those details and the name of her former librarian shows what a library meant to her, and means to others.
”This is an exciting opportunity,” she said.
As City Council representative for the east Springfield area, Joe Pishioneri, council president and Ward 6 councilor, said that even though the book drops seem like a small gesture it’s ”big to be included in the community” and added that he’s ”looking forward to using it” himself.
