By James Lomuscio
From his beach chair, longtime resident Bob Fatherly stared at the wide, orange ribbon cordoning off the gathering crowd from the steps of the newly repurposed Westport Library today.
First Selectman Jim Marpe addresses guests today at the grand reopening of the Westport Library. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo
“I brought these just in case Bill Harmer needed it,” Fatherly said, pulling out a huge pair of shears from his blazer side pocket.
Harmer, who took the helm as the library’s executive director four years ago, is credited with shepherding the more than $21 million project through completion.
Fatherly soon learned his blades wouldn’t be needed. Within a short while First Selectman Jim Marpe, brandishing a huge pair of scissors designed for ribbon cuttings, appeared on the front steps. He was accompanied by Gov. Ned Lamont and an array of state and local officials.
“It’s a privilege to be here today to celebrate the reopening of the Westport Library, a true town treasure,” Marpe said.. “How fitting that this ceremony is taking place overlooking Jesup Green, since it was Morris Jesup who funded the construction of the library in 1908.
“Mr. Jesup was a visionary in his time, and I think he would be pleased that his library now anchors this beautiful green that honors him with an entry that enhances its use,” he added.
Marpe had a host of descriptions of the building, calling it “our own university, a center of learning, a place for debate and collaboration.
“It is a job incubator, an opportunity, a network builder,” he said. “It is a study hall, a community center and an imagination station.”
His comments were far from hyperbole, as the makeover includes two multimedia studios; an 18-foot video wall; expanded MakerSpace; nine conference rooms; seven meeting rooms; a more than 500-seat forum for performances, programs and events; an expanded café with an outdoor deck; a museum-style store; and lest one forget, books.
“I want to live here; I want to move back,” said Lamont, who lived in Westport on Harbor Road in 1981, met his wife in town and recalled sailboarding to Longshore Park from his home.
“This is what a library can mean to a community,” he added. A library brings a community to life.”
Following the ribbon cutting at which Marpe invited the children present to join him and others on the steps, there was a subsequent tour of the facility, one that drew an estimated 800 people, according Rachel Pentagaro, library spokeswoman.
Inside the building, Lamont said that the renovation effort was a perfect example of a public-private partnership. Of the $21 million, the town put up $5 million, the state $1 million, and the remainder came from private donations and fundraising efforts.
Rob Haroun, a local developer who served as chairman of the library’s building committee, said that the genius of the makeover designed by architect Henry Myerberg was that the transformation did not involve increasing the building’s square footage.
“We did not increase the footprint, but we recaptured a lot of the interior space that was underutilized,” Haroun said.
State Sen. Tony Hwang reiterated the theme of the library, one of the most heavily used in the state, being an enrichment center, a university in its own right.
“Knowledge can be attained by everyone,’ Hwang said. “It’s a powerful testament to this community.”
Lamont described the library as a means of bringing a community to life.” He added that public libraries, which Andrew Carnegie started in the late 1800s, funding 2,500 nationwide, have to keep pace with the times and societal advances.
“Libraries have to reinvent themselves, just as companies have to and the state has to,” Lamont said.
Harmer, who received accolades throughout the day, said that it had been his dream to have the ribbon cutting on such a perfect day.
The weather delivered with crisp breezes, bright sun and azure skies amid the backdrop of Jesup Green in the front and glimmering Saugatuck River views visible from the forum’s high windows.
The Westport Library was now open for business with a long line of people checking out books, browsing items in the gift shop, going on tours or sitting down for lunch al fresco or inside the café.
“Look at what we’ve done to the place,” Harmer said. “It’s pretty stunning.”
