Photo by Holly Allen – Meriden-Ozawkie Public Library representatives Jennifer Lloyd, Drew Sams, Kristina Orndorff, and Blanche Wulfekoetter braved the brutal cold Monday morning to celebrate at the location of the new library building, coming in 2027!
by Holly Allen
The decades-long campaign for a new library building at Meriden has reached an impetus with the receipt of a $650,000 Community Development Block Grant from the state Department of Commerce. With a two-year timeline stipulated in the terms of the grant, a new building should be in place by 2027.
The City of Meriden worked alongside the Meriden-Ozawkie Library and Brett Waggoner with Governmental Assistance Services to write the grant, which was submitted late last fall. Just this month, the city received word that the grant proposal had been accepted, and the library will be receiving the funds.
“Our hearts are so full. We would love to give a huge thank you to the City of Meriden for this opportunity and for their support. We cannot express our gratitude enough,” said library director Drew Sams. “Today we celebrate a huge step towards our dream!”
With the grant, capital improvement fund, and nearly $670,000 donated over decades of fundraising, the library now has $1.5 million to build a new library. While it is not a requirement of the grant to have matching money, the application approval process utilized a point system — because the library had matching funds available, there was a higher chance of being awarded the grant.
The need for a new space is two-fold. For one, the library’s current location in a rented space of Countryside Square is inconvenient, as it lies across the highway from the town proper and the school, making it a dangerous trek for kids. The new location will place the library between Jeff West Junction and the Rock Creek Township Fire Station on the west side of the highway.
“We wanted children in the community to be able to safely access the building without having to cross the highway. There were many discussions about where the building should be, but when the land next to the fire station became available, our board jumped on the opportunity to purchase it,” Sams said. “Our goal is to give our community a larger, adequate space and a building the taxpayers will own.”
Secondly, the current space is smaller than is ideal for what the library provides. While weeding the catalog is a healthy practice, the library at Meriden has to do so aggressively to stay within the confines of its current space. The library’s collection includes nearly 16,000 items and nearly 16,000 patrons walked through its doors last year.
There is also a lack of open area for displays, programming, and community events. The library offered 261 programs just last year, including book clubs, craft and cooking classes, holiday events, storytime at both Meriden and Ozawkie, school outreach, and club activities.
The goal has always been to include a community room inside the library which could also be used by patrons and residents of the area. Currently the Meriden-Ozawkie Library’s summer reading program, which has seen recent attendance in excess of 200 participants, is held at the Meriden United Methodist Church gymnasium.
“We would love to use our own location in the future,” Sams said. However, when the board applied for the grant, it did so with the intention of the library itself being completed in Phase 1 of the project. Phase 2 would include the community room. “Our goal is to complete Phase 2 during the construction of Phase 1 if we are able to receive donated labor and materials from our community.”
Phase 1, the library portion, will include adequate space for the current collection, two private study rooms, an activity room that would serve as a space for our programming/flex space, and space for staff to work. The new location will also allow for plenty of outdoor space.
“We will continue to fundraise to complete this project. We know we will be able to achieve this dream if we continue to receive the amazing support from our community as we have in the past,” Sams added. “We have spent the last five years trying everything in our power to make this building happen. With the increase in material costs, we have definitely faced our fair share of challenges. But we haven’t given up. Although things just look a little different than originally planned, we’re very happy with what we’ve been able to come up with.”
The library board has worked with BG Consultants, Lawrence, on blueprints for the building. The company has experience working with other communities utilizing CDBG grant monies. While still in its early phases, the two-year grant timeline indicates the building will be completed by 2027.
Sams credits much of the momentum of fundraising for a new library to her predecessor, Jerie Tichenor, who worked at the library for nearly two decades. From the beginning, she dreamed of a new building. In 2013, she worked to create a district library comprised of Meriden, Ozawkie, and Ozawkie and Rock Creek Townships.
“She always worked tirelessly to achieve her dreams of expanding our services to the community. I hope to continue this and build on her many years of hard work,” Sams stated “Our community has really rallied behind us because of her many years of service and her compassion. I would love to thank her for getting us here.”
Sams also credits past and current board members who have kept hope alive during this long journey.
“Each board member has brought a unique perspective to this project and has been vital in making it happen,” she said.
The current board consists of Jennifer Lloyd, Blanche Wulfekoetter, Heather Williams, Anne Matzek, Kelly Martin, Kristina Orndorff, and Nanette Johnson.
She is grateful to her staff of Kayla Ray, Susan Edwards, and Journey Casey for being assets to the library, along with assistant director Bailey Burns.
“I think without her help, I would have gone insane. Her passion for librarianship and our community is not something you find every day. I caught lightning in a bottle the day I hired her,” Sams said.
Letters of recommendation for the grant application were written by Ashley Harr at EstablishFit, Colter Scott, the director of Woolly Farms, Wes Sturgeon, the principal of Jefferson West Elementary, Mazi Barnes, the Ozawkie city clerk, Matt Williams, maintenance manager of the City of Meriden, and Ron Ellis, Kansas State Representative. Sams considers them great partners and supporters of the library.
“I cannot thank our community and our patrons enough. We are so lucky to be a part of a place where people genuinely care about each other and bettering the community. Our library feels like a second home thanks to the people who walk in our door,” Sams stated. “We look forward to the next stage of this adventure.”
