At Chelsea Public Library, growth begets growth

Much of what the city of Chelsea is today is credited to former Mayor Earl Niven.

“Mayor Niven had a vision for the city and he loved Chelsea,” Dana Polk, director of the Chelsea Public Library, said. “So in his mind, I think he had a plan or progression to start bringing things in.”

One thing in particular Niven hoped to bring to the city was a library of its own. Polk has been an integral figure within the city of Chelsea since before its incorporation in 1997, and she has served as the city’s library director since it opened in its first location in February 2001.

The library has been housed in a number of places, from the second floor of the old City Hall to an independent building called the Crane House, which now houses the Chelsea Historical Society. In March 2018, the library moved to occupy the former Renasant Bank building.

The move nearly tripled the library’s square footage, from around 1,500 to 5,100 square feet. It was also a “full-circle” move, as the Renasant building had previously housed Chelsea City Hall when the library was located there.

According to Polk, the library has seen a significant amount of growth in their first year at the new building. 

The library had a 22 percent increase in public computer usage, a 50 percent increase in circulation and was even able to sign around 500 city residents up for library cards within the first five months of operation, she said.

In order to put on programs, the library has partnered with the community center to utilize their space to accommodate more activities. Within the library building, Lego Saturdays are a popular treat and preschool story time on Wednesdays and Thursdays sees up to 40 attendees.

A summer program called KZT Hands on Learning, during which  kids can experiment with robotics, snap circuits and coding, has been so popular that library staff now integrated it into a year-round program. 

During the warmer months of the year, Polk said, the library will often use the large back patio that was constructed with the help of a generous donation by a Chelsea couple.

In addition to general book circulation, patrons have access to a computer lab, a meeting room, patio and various online resources, including a collection of ebooks. Additionally, there are T-Mobile hotspots and Roku digital streaming sticks available for checkout. 

For teachers, the library has a special die-cut machine for cutting out handout activities for their classrooms, which is free to use if the teachers bring their own paper. The library will provide paper for them to use for 10 cents a page.

“I love this building,” Polk said, calling their new location a blessing. “I think the renovations, the company that did the renovations and the vision that Mayor Tony had with my input, I think we have a fantastic facility here. In fact, the mayor has said that we have the prettiest building in Chelsea.”