Family Fun Marks Opening of Apple Valley Library Space

Face painting, a balloon artist, crafts, and a children's performer will greet guests at the opening of temporary library space at the Newton T. Bass Branch Library in Apple Valley on Saturday, April 30. The event begins at 10:30 a.m. with a special kickoff and dedication with guest speakers, a bag giveaway and light refreshments. Every guest who checks out 15 items from the library during the event becomes eligible for a prize drawing at 1 p.m. Regular library services are returning to the Apple Valley civic center in 5,000 square feet of modular units in the parking lot of the existing library building at 14901 Dale Evans Parkway in Apple Valley. The library closed last year due to extensive structural issues and the temporary library will operate until the building is repaired. "I encourage families to come out and enjoy the library again," said First District Supervisor Robert Lovingood. "I'm pleased we are able to open this library while we work to repair the roof on the existing building." The library building is undergoing extensive repairs to replace the roof and the support structure, which turned out to be insufficient to support the original roof. Identifying the problem and determining how to address it has required extensive study and deliberation by engineers and insurers, as well as design work. The project has encountered a series of unforeseen challenges, but the County is committed to providing Apple Valley library patrons with a quality facility as soon as possible. The County will keep the community updated on the project. In the temporary space, full library services will be available including 25 public access computers, printing availability, and free Wi-Fi. In addition, the Summer Reading Program kicks off on Monday June 6 and continues through Saturday July 30. This year's theme is super heroes. Rewards for both kids and adults are available depending on the number of books, pages and minutes of reading completed this summer. The Summer Reading Program also celebrates and supports the Countywide Vision's literacy campaign, Vision2Read, which seeks to focus attention on the importance of reading, highlight literacy-related programs and services, and connect people to literacy resources and volunteer opportunities. A countywide challenge is also available to children and teenagers to reach certain reading goals and they will be entered into a drawing to win prizes. The San Bernardino County Library System is a dynamic network of 32 branch libraries that serves a diverse population over a vast geographic area. The County library system strives to provide equal access to information, technology, programs, and services for all people who call San Bernardino County home. The library plays a key role in the achievement of the Countywide Vision by contributing to educational, cultural, and historical development of our County community. For more information on the San Bernardino County library system, please visit http://www.sbclib.org/ or call (909) 387-2220.