The West Hartford Public Library is ‘Looking Ahead’ with its new Strategic Planning Initiative.

By Ronni Newton

The West Hartford Public Library is working on its strategic plan for the future, and there are multiple opportunities for the public to provide input to help shape the organization, including a survey and participation in a community conversation.

The strategic planning initiative is called “Looking Ahead: Share Your Voice Today to Create Your Library of Tomorrow” – and Library Director Laura Irmscher is hopeful for plenty of community guidance in the creation of a roadmap for the next three to five years.

“Hearing from the community is critical to the success of the library,” Irmscher said. “We want to make sure the programs and services we provide enrich the lives of our residents and library users.”

The West Hartford Public Library previously engaged in a process for creation of a the 2017-2022 strategic plan – and incorporated many enhancements suggested by the community such as private study spaces for individuals and small groups that according to Irmscher were used over 1,100 times in the last year alone. In addition, based on community input the library created Studio 20 South at the Noah Webster branch – a digital maker studio open to the public for use as “a creative, collaborative, and educational space providing dedicated equipment, computers, software, production, and co-working furnishings.”

The strategic plan initiative is being made possible by the West Hartford Library Foundation, and will also incorporate input from staff and other stakeholders as the library looks to develop and implement services to best meet the needs of the community for years to come.

The community conversations provide in-person as well as virtual opportunities to engage in the process, and in addition to the survey there are also comment boards at all three library branches and at Town Hall.

There’s even an incentive to take the survey: a chance to win a $100 gift card to a local business. It takes less than five minutes to complete, and you can click here to begin.

Anyone and everyone – regular users of the West Hartford Public Library as well as those who have never stepped inside one of the branches or used any of the services – is encouraged to participate in the strategic planning process.

Community conversations are scheduled for:

• Wednesday, Oct. 25, 6:30 p.m. – Bishops Corner Library, 15 Starkel Rd.
• Saturday, Oct. 28, 10:30 a.m. – Noah Webster Library, 20 South Main St.
• Thursday, Nov. 2, 6:30 p.m. – Zoom virtual meeting

To register for a community conversation, or for additional information, click here or call 860-561-6990.

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