A New Kentville Library
by Lynn Pulsifer
The doors of the old library in Kentville have closed to the public after 29 years, and it is with long-awaited excitement that a new library will be opening across town in a decommissioned United Church. After operating out of a repurposed car dealership building since 1987, the small library which occupied just over 2,000 sq ft., has been one of the smallest, but one of the busiest in the Valley.
Our new library home will be in the former United Church of St. Paul and St. Stephen. The corner stone of this beautiful stone church was laid in 1914, and the native stone used to build the church was quarried at White Rock, a community not far from Kentville. Our new space in the church is being leased under a joint cost-sharing agreement between the Town of Kentville and the County of Kings, and will offer a unique library setting for both town and county residents to enjoy.
The newly formed Friends of the Kentville Library group is currently in the process of raising necessary funds to provide all the shelving, furnishings and some new windows in our church space of approximately 4,000 sq ft. Our goal is to raise $200,000 over the upcoming months.
Our group is excited to have a well-known Canadian author, Margaret Atwood, who has family connections in this area, agree to launch a fund-raising initiative through an online donate site, Canada Helps, as well as through family donations. Her involvement and interest in helping us to make Kentville’s unique new library a “one-of-a-kind” library, exemplifies her dedication in promoting the concept that a library, even a small-town one, is more than just a place with books on shelves. Our new library will feature a Community Room, a Childrens’ area, a Young Adult space and computer area. It will have high vaulted ceilings and beautiful windows. It will be a place to read, to learn, and to meet friends of all generations. It will be the place in Kentville to discover literacy.
