SUFFOLK, Va. — Neighbors and community leaders packed West Washington Street in Suffolk on Saturday for the grand opening of the new Downtown Suffolk Library — a project more than 20 years in the making.
Suffolk Mayor Michael Duman marked the occasion with enthusiasm.
"This is an outstanding morning, a monumental morning, a joyful morning," Duman said when he addressed the crowd.
The celebration included performances, games, and interactive activities for all ages.
The library features teen and children's areas, large meeting rooms, and additional resources on the first floor. The second floor includes a digital maker lab, quiet reading areas, and an outdoor patio. The building also has 10 study spaces — 2 on the first floor and 8 on the second.
Suffolk neighbor Chanda Wise, a parent and a teacher, said the new library will open doors for the next generation of learners.
"So, I'm just out here to see what beautiful things the library has to bring for us. I wanted to bring my baby out, my teenagers, everybody. Like, I just love the library," Wise said.
Clint Rudy, City of Suffolk Director of Libraries, said planning for the building began in 2000, but the road to opening was not without obstacles. The Downtown Suffolk Library has been under construction since 2024.
"In 2000, we awarded the contract to the architects. We started to design. Unfortunately then it was March of 2020 so we had a lot of challenges with getting community feedback, especially reaching out to people. But, we made it happen, and now we're here," Rudy said.
Rudy said every part of the building was designed with the community in mind.
"We really created this space so that it's really theirs and lots of inner activity lots of space for them to connect with each other," Rudy said.
He said the new library reflects how the role of libraries has evolved.
"Libraries are different than what some people think of from their childhood. There's lots of noise, what you can see lots of activity. So, we needed to create a space that could be for quiet, so this is our quiet reading room," Rudy said.
Minerva Hernandez Garcia, Assistant Director of Libraries for the City of Suffolk, said the library offers more than books.
"People think libraries are books that we are sitting here reading but really people are coming here to get the resources that they can't anywhere else," Hernandez Garcia said.
Suffolk neighbor Shannon Hunt said the new space delivers on that promise.
"It's such a revision, and it's such a refreshing revision. Just the aesthetic of it all, the space, the comfort. I can charge my phone. I can like, get a laptop. I can get a study room," Hunt said.
Hernandez Garcia said library leaders are looking forward to welcoming the community.
"We are really excited to be able to offer them a space that's really theirs and that they can make their own," Hernandez Garcia said.
The downtown library is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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