The sounds of music are already filling the air outside the Broken Bow Public Library, where a new outdoor patio is giving residents another place to gather, relax and get a little creative.
Community members and city officials gathered Thursday afternoon, Oct. 29, to celebrate the patio’s official opening, but some of their youngest visitors had already gotten a head start.
“When I got here, kids were already trying them out,” Betsy Smith said, referring to the newly installed outdoor musical instruments. “It’s great to see them in use already.”
The patio, which features musical instruments, additional seating and improved accessibility, was the result of a project that began earlier this spring when library staff and board members started brainstorming ways to improve the outdoor space.
According to Library Director Megan Svoboda, an AARP grant opportunity helped turn those conversations into reality.
“We just saw that grant opportunity and thought of a way that we could utilize those funds and make an improvement for the library and the community,” Svoboda said.
The project moved quickly, with funding arriving in June and a grant deadline requiring the work to be completed by December.
“It was a little crazy,” Svoboda said of the timeline. “It was a fast, a quick-action grant from the AARP, so that was kind of the deadline.”
Despite the short turnaround, the library was able to complete the initial improvements with support from several community partners.
During the opening, Svoboda thanked the Library Board, Library Foundation, City of Broken Bow officials and crews, the mayor, Palmer Monument, AARP and the Carnegie Foundation for their contributions.
“Of course, the City of Broken Bow has put in quite a bit of funding for this project,” she said.
While the musical instruments offer children an opportunity to explore sounds and creativity, Svoboda hopes the patio will appeal to visitors of all ages and introduce more people to the library.
“We were just hoping to have people come and embrace the arts aspect,” she said. “Hopefully, that might invite them into the library, just another reason to come in.”
Although the patio is now open, additional improvements are planned, including a shade sail over the seating area, string lighting, potted plants and more seating. Svoboda said the library would also like to add additional musical instruments, activities for children and eventually a statue in the center of the space.
The shade sail will be installed at a later date, as staff decided against putting it up only to take it down again for the winter.
“That’s our whole long-term goal,” Svoboda said. “It’ll take a while to accomplish all the things.”
She expressed confidence that the continued support of the community and those involved with the library would help bring the remaining plans to life.
“I believe in all of the great minds we have working on all the things around the city and the library, we’ll get it accomplished,” she said.
