Library to mark 75th anniversary

The Boulder City Library is hosting a free celebration to commemorate its 75 years of being part of the community.

“We hope the community will see the event as a celebration of the services offered over many years in Boulder City and a thank you to the community who helped us determine what those services will be,” said Library Director Kim Diehm. “Everything the library does is for the betterment of the community — to enrich their lives with education, culture and the arts.”

The festivities will begin at 5 p.m. Friday, April 20. It will start with a performance by Garrett Junior High School’s show choir. Then attendees will have a chance to see the renderings of the library’s expansion project created by architecture firm LGA. The winners of the student art contest will also be named.

At 7:30 p.m., the program will move outside for a free viewing of the animated musical “Coco.”

Library staff will hand out promotional items and door prizes throughout the evening.

During its history, the library has provided the community with a variety of services and programs, and Diehm said she plans to continue the tradition.

“The library has given the community a place away from home to read, explore, learn and gather,” she said.

“We plan to continue that by expanding shelving for collections, especially large print and teen fiction; increasing the number of meeting rooms for groups to meet with less conflict with library programs, as well as creating smaller study rooms; continue with the one-on-one help with all things technology related; continue offering databases of interest to residents such as Ancestry.com and Hoopla; increase high-interest classes in a new Makerspace room and demo kitchen; create an enclosed computer lab; and offer more comfortable seating areas for people to meet and catch up with friends.”

The library’s expansion project to build out its basement is in the beginning stages.

That area holds the library archives, in addition to providing space for the Boulder City/Hoover Dam Museum, Henderson libraries and one of the local Rotary clubs. Angel Tree also stores tables there to use each year when it provides holiday gifts for the community.

One part has a finished concrete floor, and the other portion does not.

Diehm said there will be some big projects for the library this year that include collaborative efforts with schools and the city, a local author fair, Superhero Saturday, Angel Tree and outreach programs for the homebound and care facility residents.

Contact reporter Celia Shortt Goodyear at cgoodyear@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9401. Follow her on Twitter @csgoodyear.