By Rod Lee

If one word was used these days to describe the beautifully renovated and expanded Grafton Public Library, it would probably be “showpiece.”

  “Everyone who comes in loves it, so that’s a relief,” Library Director Beth Gallaway said on February 7 before offering a visitor a tour of the facility.

  As if there could have been any doubt, given the work that went into the multimillion-dollar project, which “almost quadrupled” the size of the building, from 7200 square feet to 25,000. The rebuild was funded in part by a state grant administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC).

  The excitement and pride that was apparent at a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony Ms. Gallaway took part in on a Friday in December is still running sky high, for obvious reasons.

  Julie Grace from the Library Planning & Building Committee, State Sen. Michael Moore, State Rep. David Muradian Jr., Roland Ochseubien from the MBLC, Town Administrator Evan Brassard, Selectman Peter Carlson, Aaron Vandesteen from the Board of Library Trustees, Dana Wilson from the Capital Campaign, and Ms. Gallaway all spoke that morning.

  Ms. Gallaway is easily the most ardent promoter of the new facility.

  She loves to tick off all that has been gained from the rebuild.

  Here are some examples.

-A separate teen area. “Before,” she says, “it was a corner. It’s for kids 12 to 18, but it’s mostly middle schoolers who want to be here.”

-A large community space downstairs that can seat up to seventy-five people.

-The historical collection used to be “tucked away with no security or preservation; now it’s more accessible.”

-“The big-ticket item, an automated materials handler and with that four self-checkouts, it does the work of three to four people, so staff can spend more time one-on-one in direct contact with patrons.”

-A state-of-the-art HVAC system, “before we had radiators.”

-A green roof, paid for by a donor.

-A massive historical reading room, “a great study space. We have a grandfather clock coming from the Willard museum that will go over there,” she said, pointing, “and the town is going to provide us with a weights and measures cabinet.”

-A staff break room, previously “a third of its new size.”

-A full-service elevator.

-A new space for new books and large-print books, “usually the first place our adults come to.”

-A Friends corner on the first floor, “they give us $10,000 or more a year.”

-A new children’s room, with tutoring rooms, and a family room for nursing moms.

-A teen gaming room “and a donor gave us money for a patio off the teen room.”

  “We pride ourselves on our things,” she said, pointing to shelves on the second floor that house board games, musical instruments and other items for the enjoyment of patrons.

  -Bookshelves on the second floor stand two shelves high “and are expandable,” she said.

  -There are even water fountains.

  Ms. Gallaway cannot wait for community space that is currently unavailable because of the coronavirus pandemic to be put into use. “I’m looking at March for adults and May for youth,” she said. “I’m looking at what other libraries are doing” in dealing with the issue.

  Right now, library patrons can come in for “direct services, computers, copies, finding materials.”

  She knows for sure that the community room will be utilized at least once this spring.

  “I’m getting married in May on the Common and we will walk across the street for the reception right here in the community room!” she said.

  She says the community room will be perfect for authors, storytellers, musical groups and many others.

  “A lot of outside organizations are asking ‘can we have our meeting here,’” she said. “This will be a source of income we can keep for ourselves.”

  The same applies to the four electric car charging stations, which are situated in the parking lot behind the building’s rear entrance.

  “Yes, these are being used,” she said. “We’ve only made fifty-five dollars so far. It’s only a little bit of money and our electric bill is a lot!”

  A “catering kitchen” off the community room will be available on a rental basis, she said.

  As evidence that virtually nothing has been overlooked in establishing the renovated and expanded Grafton Public Library as perhaps the most spectacular building of its kind in all of the Blackstone Valley and Central Massachusetts, a RFID (radio frequency identifier) will help reduce the “three to five percent” of materials libraries lose each year by utilizing a marking inside the back cover of books ordered for checkout that triggers an alarm if they are claimed improperly.

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Contact Rod Lee at [email protected] or 774-232-2999.