From The Director

In October 2002, the Board of Trustees adopted the Park Master Plan developed by Copley and Wolff, and that plan guided park improvements since then. Last year we hired Elmore Designs Collaborative to develop detailed plans to restore the historic gardens throughout the Park.

In 2003, a Space Study Committee made up of Trustees, Incorporators and staff selected the library building firm of Tappe and Associates as our architects. They have designed an expanded space for children’s activities on the Park level. This will include a beautiful story garden that will also serve as a safe center of refuge with fresh air in an emergency.

Since the addition of 1992, there has been an increase of 47% in the circulation of children’s materials and 76% increase in service to teenagers. With the number of visitors to the Hoxie Gallery, attendance at cultural programs in the auditorium, public meetings, First Night and Westerly Is learning activities, the Westerly Library hosts the greatest number of annual visitors to any Rhode Island Library outside of Providence.

In 1999, I wrote in my annual report to the Trustees and Incorporators that the library world was stunned by the announcement that the Encyclopedia Britannica was no longer going to be published in book format. It was being produced in a CD-ROM version. That stunning new development is already an outdated technology.

The Trustees retained the services of Fund Consultants to guide us all through the process of raising the money necessary to accomplish both of our goals. To do that, we needed strong community leadership. We certainly have that.