After two years, Martha Cooper Library has reopened. It’s located within the Garden District, in a neighborhood, making it easily accessible for families who live nearby.
Jacqueline Aguilar | KGUN 9 Branch manager Tara Foxx-Lupo says renovations were responsive to the community’s needs.
Jacqueline Aguilar | KGUN 9 “We were so heavily utilized that every seat in the house was taken up,” Foxx-Lupo said. “Certain unintended consequences, like noise complaints, were very frequent and the space just really wasn’t keeping pace with the usage patterns in the community.”
Martha Cooper Library has doubled in size, going from 6,000 sq. ft. to over 13,000 sq. ft., offering more space and resources for children and teens.
“There’s schools nearby. Like Doolan, Rincon, Catalina and that means that we have a huge potential young adult population, but we have to create a place for them to be,” said Foxx-Lupo.
Many people who visited the library before it closed in November 2022, like Donna Bigelow, showed up early to the reopening.