Norfolk Public Library Announces Reopening of Library Facility

NORFOLK —  Director Sarah Ward is pleased to announce that the Norfolk Public Library will reopen to the public this week after being closed due to a pipe malfunction.

The Norfolk Public Library is set to reopen its doors to the public tomorrow, March 15. Community members can visit the library during its regular business hours, between 10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., to conduct regular business and browse the library’s catalog.

The reopening of the library follows numerous repairs that were completed due to a water pipe malfunction in late December 2022 that caused significant water damage to the library, resulting in its closure. Repairs included a new carpet, new drywall and insulation, electric and plumbing upgrades, and three re-tiled bathrooms.

The library is pleased to share that no catalog items were damaged or destroyed by the water pipe malfunction.

Throughout the facility’s closure, the library continued to conduct library services out of a temporary circulation desk in the building. While community members were unable to walk through and browse the library, patrons were still able to place holds on books and pick them up, as well as participate in virtual library programming.

Community members were also still able to request passport appointments and receive museum passes throughout the facility’s closure.

During this time, staff also took the opportunity to complete some projects that would have been difficult to accomplish with the public in the building.

“The layout of adult fiction and non-fiction has always been an issue and we decided to take this opportunity to move them around to make browsing easier and safer for our patrons,” said Director Ward.

Patrons should note that the meeting rooms were also damaged, however, they will be available to the public beginning on Wednesday as well. Any reservations made before the library’s closure will still be honored.

“We’re extremely excited to reopen to the public tomorrow and once again offer all of the great resources and programming to our patrons in person,” Director Ward said. “I would like to thank all those who assisted us throughout the closure and made our reopening possible, including Director of Facilities Matt Hafner and his entire department, the recreation department, the administrative team at the Town Hall, the Norfolk Grange for allowing us to use their spaces, and the Council on Aging. I would also like to thank all library staff members who were integral to us continuing to offer services in the wake of our building’s closure.”

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