Contact: Sandy Neerman
Phone: 373-2699

                 
Library Plans Groundbreaking Ceremony

GREENSBORO, NC - (November 26, 2008)- A Groundbreaking Ceremony for the new 10,000 square foot McGirt-Horton Library facility will take place on December 4 at 4 pm. Mayor Yvonne Johnson and Representative Goldie Wells will be among the dignitaries on hand. Everyone in the community is invited and after the ceremony there will be entertainment and refreshments.

Library Director Sandy Neerman is excited about the direction of the new McGirt-Horton facility because it represents the community’s vision of what is needed in a public library. “This new building is a result of a lot of hard work by organizations and individuals in the neighborhood. One group in particular, the Concerned Citizens of Northeast Greensboro, has been instrumental in the planning process. This groundbreaking coincides with their 10th anniversary and we are thrilled to be a part of that celebration,” says Neerman. “I would also like to recognize the project oversight provided by the McGirt-Horton Branch Library Advisory Committee, which includes community leaders, parents, teens and Library staff members.”

This building will be the one of the first LEED Certified libraries in North Carolina. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and is concerned with many aspects of “green building.” McGirt-Horton will also be the first Greensboro Public Library with a teen focus that includes a video lounge and multi-media lab. Sandy Neerman says, “it will be ‘A Place Where Teens Are Important’ as defined by our Teen Advisory Board.”

In 1986 the McGirt-Horton Branch Library opened as a one-room community reading station in Claremont Courts. The current location opened in a storefront space in the Renaissance Shopping Center in 1989. The new facility will be built at the front of the shopping center property and will serve as a model for future redevelopment.

This new facility is being viewed by the community as a focal point to revitalize the neighborhood. As one supporter put it, “we are just so excited to have something new here and the Library is a place where everyone, regardless of age or education can better their lives.”

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