Halton Hills Public Library Celebrates the Opening of their New Reading Deck
The Halton Hills Public Library recently finished the reading deck construction. The outdoor space is fully accessible from inside the Acton Branch and provides visitors with a comfortable space to read and study during the spring and summer months.
The Acton Branch deck celebration happened alongside Global Bird Day, an annual event that honours birds. Not only did attendees get to view and walk on the new deck for the first time, but they were also treated to snacks, activities and also a birds of prey presentation.
Acton UP spoke with Melanie Southern, the CEO and Chief Librarian of the Halton Hills Public Library. Southern is looking forward to the expansion of the reading deck and comments,
“The deck has been a vision for this library for a very long time and we are so excited. As you can see here, the deck is an extension of the library. We think this is a wonderful space where people can do programming and sit and read and enjoy.”
The deck has been a project in the works for some years, however, it was delayed due to Covid-19. Southern comments, “we have some temporary furniture for right now, but we will make sure we have permanent furniture so that the deck is always an accessible space.”
The Town Council was willing to support the cause and provided the rest of the money for the construction of the deck. The Friends of the Library raised a portion of the money by selling used books and book fairs. The local community played a big part in the donations raised for the extension of the Acton Library.
Dennis Roberts, Marketing and Communications Specialist for Halton Hills Public Library tells Acton UP “ The cost of the deck was approx. $115,000 (including furniture). The Friends of the Halton Hills Public Library raised just over $20,000 and the rest came from Municipal and Accessibility funding.”
Mark Rowe is the Chair of the Friends of the Halton Hills Public Library and he shares that the deck has been a part of the library's original design and has been a goal for the library for some time. Rowe shares,
“The Friends of the Library were asked if they could help to raise funds, to show the Town Council that they need to put in the budget for the library. So we raised a considerable amount of money, around 20 thousand, and showed the council that this is important to people.”
The Acton Library is located at 17 River Street, in Acton. If you would like to donate to the Friends of Halton Hills Library or volunteer, more information can be found, here.
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