This article was originally published in Patch News from a press release by the Spokane Public Library.
Six of our new and renovated libraries opening in 2021 and 2022 will include fun and whimsical children’s playspaces designed by Luci Creative. Improved children’s spaces were the number one facility improvement requested by the public when the Library conducted community outreach prior to the bond measure passing.
Studies (like this one) have shown that the use of the Play-and-Learn spaces in libraries are associated with increases in caregiver and child conversation and interaction known to support language, literacy, and STEM skills. Spokane Public Library is fostering a new learning culture that will impact Spokane residents in the places they naturally go.
Our first new and renovated libraries will open later this fall and we can’t wait for you to see them. Here’s what to expect.
Mt. Shaw will be the ultimate hangout for kids at Hillyard Library. Visitors will be greeted by a friendly Mountain Lion and an Osprey and the ceiling is dotted by whimsical hot air balloons. There are plenty of spaces for quiet reading and reflection in addition to imaginative play, as well as a play-and-learn space for our youngest visitors.
A music-loving mystery lives at Liberty Park and can even ride a kid-powered zipline across the top of the library.
Stop by Moose’s Market for all your garden essentials and explore the carrot climber, raised garden beds, a farm stand and a flower garden for the wee sprouts.
Take a dive under the Spokane River with Goat at the River Rumpus, featuring a slide, a submarine inspired by a Riverfront Park gondola, and a special toddler playspace in the belly of a fish!
A rafter of turkeys will live in the rafters at South Hill Library, complete with a turkey coop climber and a nest for our littlest library visitors. The walls will be lined with a wheat graphic as a nod to the South Hill’s proximity to the Palouse. Just don’t get stuck in a turkey traffic jam!
A family of marmots will live at the Indian Trail library and our littlest readers can float on their imagination in a leaf-powered sailboat. Look for clues from other libraries like a tunnel leading to the Shadle Park Library and a Sasquatch in a tree…
Luci Creative provided exhibit design services in partnership with custom fabricator Ravenswood Studio, Inc.
