Westwood Public Library To Reopen January 4

The Westwood Public Library today announced that the Main Branch, at 660 High Street, will reopen to the public on Janaury 4, 2016, complete with beautiful wood ceilings securely and permanently installed.

For the past several weeks, the library has been closed to the public as crews worked on the new ceiling installation. Glances into the library windows as you passed by on Route 109 highlighted the scaffolding and ladders and lifts that were used to access the tall vaulted spaces. Crews are currently working on the ceiling spaces on the second floor, and the lifts, saws and scaffolding will soon be giving way to electricians hanging light fixtures, while painters and cleaning crews finish up inside.

While the Library was closed for construction, there was an opportunity to pull some additional wires above the ceiling in order to add technology components in the very well-used Community Room. The following options will be available for use by groups and patrons when the library re-opens in January.

· Installation of an FM Hearing Assistance System. This system can be used by up to four individuals at any one time and includes four receivers with earspeakers and a neckloop device to be used with hearing aids. Funding for this system has been generously provided by the Friends of the Westwood Public Library.

· In addition, a large rolling cart with a flat panel television is also being installed. This will allow for additional viewing capability in the library’s community room – and provides a moveable screen so that individuals sitting as part of a panel or forum are able to view what is being projected on the large screen without having to relocate into the audience.

The project was a collaborative effort, spearheaded by the Permanent Building Committee, and involving several construction entities, including Compass Project Management, Timberline Construction, Cheviot Corporation and Finegold Alexander Architects, along with plumbers, electricians and other trades.