The Celina Public Library Master Plan, showing how the library will serve local needs and meet community goals through to 2040, has been released for public review.
The master plan draft is like a blueprint for the city’s future public library that outlines priorities and needs for the space, as well as actionable steps to achieve them.
As outlined in the draft, it “seeks to be comprehensive, actionable, forward thinking and develops creative space planning options.”
This project is part of a larger endeavor to revitalize downtown Celina launched in 2019. It aims to build a new multistory library and administration building at 112 North Colorado St.
Assistant City Manager Kimberly Brawner told the Celina Record that the new building will feature classical design elements that will infuse it with a sense of history.
“We wanted it to look like it had been here for 100 years,” Brawner explained.
In terms of how the library part of the building, which spans the 16,000-foot first floor, will be laid out, the City of Celina hired the library design consultancy 720 Design Inc. to help figure that out.
To kick things off, library and city staff and 720 Design consultants toured 10 different libraries across Texas to gather information about the services they offered and images that would later help direct community input.
The libraries visited included several from North Texas, including the Arlington Downtown Library, Frisco Public Library, Lewisville Library, and Euless Public Library.
Next, a community outreach initiative was launched to inform residents about the new library and drum up their interest.
For instance, at the Celina Christmas on the Square event, residents were allowed to give their input on prioritizing library spaces and services using “Celina Dollars.”
This involved organizing a series of vision boards portraying different library services and spaces. Residents were asked to vote for the vision board by allocating Celina Dollars to it.
The results found that outdoor spaces were a top priority among respondents, alongside designated spaces for children, teens, and the community.
Interviews were conducted with key stakeholders, including city staff, the Parks Board, and Celina Chamber of Commerce representatives.
Lastly, a collaboration with Polco/National Research Center allowed 720 Design to develop a 12-question online survey to garner further community input. The survey was held this year from January 9 to February 10 and drew over 560 participants.
Major findings of the survey included that the ability to borrow materials was the top service respondents wished to have, and problematic parking was the number one reason they did not visit the library more often.
With this groundwork achieved, the Celina Public Library Master Plan was drafted, and now that it has been published, the community can comment on it as city and library staff prepare for the next steps.
According to the draft, the new administration and library building will be designed and built from now until 2026. From 2026 to 2035, land for new regional library facilities will be identified and purchased. By 2040, the Celina Public Library will take over the administration building — as a new larger city hall is in the works — and form a regional library.
Celina is not alone in its aim to transform its city center into a flourishing downtown.
The City of Frisco has spent $50 million renovating its downtown area, as covered in The Dallas Express. It recently began Phase One of the project, the reconstruction of Elm Street, which is expected to be finished by the end of the year.
