Decades ago (has it really been decades?), my sons and I lived within the St. Louis city limits. Not far from our apartment — it was sort of at the limits of walking distance — was a library branch. We became frequent visitors.
The youngest got his first library card here. Books for school papers were on the shelves. New authors were discovered. The oldest got his first job here.
For the good of the library — and the community — the branch moved into a larger building another mile up the road. Our household looked forward to the move. The job was gone — in favor of college across the state. But we were all eager to see shelves with ROOM. This was our branch until we moved into an adjoining library district.
Suddenly — the branch had SPACE.
On the outside: parking increase at least times five.
One the inside: A classroom in the basement. Children’s, reference, and adult reading areas were separated. More computers. A spiral staircase behind glass blocks was a neat feature.
