My City June 2022

MYDOWNTOWN

“ e building was built new,” says Schwartz, “including every piece of pipe and wiring, includ ing the pipes in the basement.” After an eight-month construc tion delay due to the pandemic and a lot of hard work by archi tects, construction crew and sta, the Flint Public Library ocially opened to residents on Saturday, May 21. e total public cost was $30.6 million, which included bonds approved by Flint resi dents for $12.6 million that was matched by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation who also pro vided an additional $15 million grant for the project. Capital campaign donations from indi viduals, families and foundations covered the remainder. e process began way back in 2017 with a search for a concept and design. “ e sta took Šeld trips to new libraries around our area for ideas and elements,” Schwartz explains. “We toured li braries in Clinton/Macomb, Novi, BloomŠeld and SouthŠeld.” e team then chose OPN Archi tects out of Cedar Rapids, IA to create the design and Michigan construction company, Clark, for implementation. After nearly Šve years of planning and work, the new library has emerged better than even Schwartz could have envisioned. “It exceeds my every expectation,” she says.

1) A. J . ROWE FAMILY SNACK ROOM.

2) THE CHILDREN’S SECTION HAS MORE SEATING AND NEW SHELVING. 3) INTERACTIVE LIGHT BOARD PROVIDES HOURS OF FUN. 4) THE “PLAY TO LEARN” AREA WAS KEPT FROM THE OLD FPL.

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1) THE NEW DIGITAL STUDIO OPENS IN JULY. 2) THE NEW GREATER FLINT AFRICAN AMERICAN SPORTS HALL OF FAME IS NOW INTERACTIVE. 3, 4) 2-HOUR LAPTOP RENTAL IS AVAILABLE TO ADULT FPL MEMBERS. 5) THE SELF-CHECKOUT SYSTEM MAKES LIBRARY VISITS QUICK AND EFFICIENT.

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Continued on pg. 95 

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