Julia Turpin, the new director of the Johnson City Public Library, will be hosting an open house on Sept. 21 to show the community new services and programs available at the facility. CONTRIBUTED
The library has been updating and adding services in the last few months that have made it possible to serve the community in new ways, and the open house is intended to showcase these updates. Among the changes are a newly designed teen section, a renovated area for youth makerspace activities, and new checkout and returns technology.
The event also gives the public a chance to visit with the library’s new director, Julia Turpin. Meeting the public is especially important to Turpin because she wants “to allow the library to take its direction from the community.” She looks forward to learning what the community needs and wants the library to be. Turpin is also excited about the library’s location in downtown, because she sees it as an opportunity for the library to get more involved in the area’s continued revitalization.
Open house attendees can explore the new teen section, which was designed by the library’s Teen Advisory Board. It features a communal space with comfortable seating, and a gaming area for board and video games. According to Katelyn Wolfe, Teen Librarian, “one of the goals of the space is to appeal to teens who are not currently library patrons.” There have been updates in the youth area as well, including a renovated craft area for preschool and elementary age to do makerspace projects. The open house will give children a chance to do sample activities.
The library also has added new self-checkout stations and a new returns system, which guests will be able to learn about and use at the event.
For further information on the open house, please contact Hannah Kiger at hannah.kiger@jcpl.net or 423.434.4474. For information on other library programs and services, please visit www.jcpl.org, call 423.434.4450, or visit the library in person at 100 W. Millard St.
