Sno-Isle Library-Lake Stevens
Posted by Gary O'Rielly on Sep 27, 2016
Our September 23rd program was a Lake Stevens Library update provided by Sonia Gufstason, Managing Librarian. There are 21 branches in the Sno-Isle system which serves all of Island and Snohomish Counties and Lake Stevens is among the smallest with 2,500 sq ft of space. Property has been purchased next to the city property recently purchased on 99th Avenue NE at Market Place. Sno-Isle purchased the lots adjacent to the property that will occupy the new City Hall and Police Department headquarters according to Mayor John Spencer who was at our meeting. The Mayor shared his enthusiasm for the future of Lake Stevens, the downtown area, our parks and the growth that is coming to our city.
The Sno-Isle system's Capital Facility Plan calls for a new larger building for our Library. Expansion is the top priority for Board of the Library system. The current facility in downtown Lake Stevens is drastically undersized. A bond issue will likely appear on the February ballot. Voters in the Lake Stevens School District area will vote on the new bond.
Approximately 60-70 toddlers attend story time. Preschool story time has 30-40. Programming in the Sno-Isle Lake Stevens are among the highest in the system. During the summer there are programs every week. The library does a lot of community outreach programs and through the local schools. A programming calendar is distributed each month. A children's concert is planned for next week and there are many business, tech and digital content programs offered by the library.
A new larger library building will be a tremendous addition to Lake Stevens. Many citizens use the libraries in Marysville and Snohomish because of the lack of space in our library. Our library is just too small to meet the existing and future needs of our community. We want to thank Sonia and Mayor John Spencer for the positive city and library update.