Northfield Public Library Oasis meets new patrons where they are

Northfield has a new library! It's a branch of the Northfield Public Library, and they're calling it the Oasis. It's a wonderful space, and it features the full range of library services. It's well-appointed and welcoming, and there are materials to check out, computers to use, space to work or relax in, and a corner where kids can play. There's even a patio that looks out over a green courtyard. The Oasis offers the kind of excellent library experience patrons in many communities have come to expect.

But there's something else that sets the Oasis apart: its location. The Northfield Public Library sits where you would expect it to be, smack dab in the middle of Northfield's historic downtown. But Northfield has grown since Jesse James and his gang rode into town, and for many would-be patrons, that downtown location isn't very convenient. Northfield Public Library Director Natalie Draper wants the Oasis to benefit "those who have limited time, means, awareness, or transportation." It's location is perfectly suited to that hope. The library is on the south side of town, and has Northfield High School, Northfield Middle School, Bridgewater Elementary School, and a number of low-income housing developments as neighbors. It's located right inside the Northfield Community Resource Center (NCRC). The NCRC also houses Fifty North (a membership organization for senior citizens), Northfield Head Start, two private daycares, the Northfield Community College Collaborative, and the Community Action Center (CAC). CAC offers a broad range of services for community members including financial and employment assistance, housing resources, recovery support, and a food shelf.

The library is staffed Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until noon and is open for self-service whenever the NCRC is open. Patrons can also pick up holds and drop off materials 24 hours per day, seven days a week, using the remote locker and book return located on the north side of the building, just outside the Community Action Center entrance.

The new space was inaugurated at a ribbon cutting on Thursday, February 29. At the event, Bill North offered comments on behalf of the Friends and Foundation of the Northfield Public Library. "When Natalie Draper identified the opportunity to co-locate a branch library in the NCRC, the Friends immediately saw the powerful and positive ways in which this would benefit the community, and allow the library and its fantastic staff to do what it does best: support all Northfielders in their individual and collective learning journeys." North continued, "That we were able to raise our goal of $100,000 not in the three years as planned, but in one, is a testament to the dedication of the library community and the resonance and reasonableness of this innovative idea." These comments and those from other guests, including Northfield mayor Rhonda Pownell, were met with raucous approval by all those in attendance, including a group of beaming schoolchildren from Bridgewater Elementary.