Urbandale's Library Is 50 Years Young This Sunday

Urbandale residents will have a chance to blast back to the past this Sunday afternoon at the Urbandale Public Library.

Staff at the library will be swinging to the fabulous 1960s as they celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the Urbandale Public Library with handfuls of vintage candy and a showing of West Side Story, which won the Academy Award for best film in 1961. Santa will drop by the library that afternoon at 1:30 p.m. as well.

“We’ll have root beer barrels, jawbreakers, pixie sticks, wax bottles and candy necklaces and we’ll also be passing out crayons to the little ones that come in,” said librarian Janine Bauer. “They get an extra special library visit this Sunday.

The Urbandale Public Library first opened its doors to the public on Dec. 11, 1961, in the former city hall building, at 3315 70^th Street in Urbandale. There were only 1,728 volumes on the shelves, a far cry from 178,000-plus materials that lines the shelves of the library’s current location, 3520 86^th Street.

Bauer, who organized the anniversary celebration, said she’s amazed by how much the library has grown over the years.

“We started out with just a little over 1,700 books. Now, when you walk out into our library, you can see 1700 books in just one corner,” Bauer said. “That’s just surprising to actually see it.

In their first year of operation, the staff at the Urbandale Public Library issued 2,800 library cards, a number that would grow to more than 6,000 just four years later.

By 1976 the library had outgrown its space at city hall, and the 32,000 volumes that lined the shelves were moved to new building, with 12,000 square feet, at 7305 Aurora Ave.

At the end of the 1990s it was clear that the library once again needed more space, and the current library - at the hub of the city government center - was built. The old library became the city's Senior Center.

The library continues to expand, increasing the amount of digital information available, meaning that many residents are able to take advantage of the library’s services, without setting foot inside the building.

"I know that since I’ve started, downloadable books have come on fast and furious, Bauer said. “The ebooks are huge and they’re becoming a huge part of our service.”

Librarians and patrons in the 1960s might have had a hard time imagining that.

“I think they probably wouldn’t have ever imagined that it would be possible to check out a book from home and read it on a computer. I think that it would probably blow their mind,” Bauer said.

“It’s definitely interesting to see how technology has changed libraries, but reading, and fostering the love of reading, has been the basis for any great mission,” said Kris Winter, the vice president of the library’s board of directors. h

“The Urbandale library is really a hallmark in central Iowa and to have a library for 50 years is really a great thing, and we need to celebrate that,” she said.