{"id":66546,"date":"2024-02-05T11:50:01","date_gmt":"2024-02-05T11:50:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bibliostaged.wpengine.com\/?p=66546"},"modified":"2025-04-29T20:00:42","modified_gmt":"2025-04-29T20:00:42","slug":"library-story-bayport-blue-point","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/library-story-bayport-blue-point\/","title":{"rendered":"Bayport-Blue Point Library Builds a Modern Space That Puts Community First"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tLIBRARY STORY\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tBayport-Blue Point Library Builds a Modern Space That Puts Community First\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 5, 2024\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tBayport-Blue Point Library was mid-build on a new library when the pandemic shut everything down. They needed to ensure their new library was prepared to meet the needs of their community no matter what the future held.\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe library installed three selfChecks and a remoteLocker outdoor to ensure they could provide convenient library access to all community members inside and outside the library.\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPost-pandemic, the new Bayport-Blue Point library has welcomed a record number of visitors while the remoteLocker outdoor has extended library service to those uncomfortable with face-to-face contact or who cannot visit during open hours.\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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The Bayport-Blue Point Public Library<\/a> serves the 14,000 residents of two neighboring communities, Bayport and Blue Point, on Long Island, NY. Founded in 1938 as a Blue Point PTA project, the library was staffed entirely by volunteers until 1970, making it one of the last volunteer-run libraries in New York State.<\/span><\/p>

Today, that commitment to community and neighborliness is still the driving force of the library. In 2018, the community overwhelmingly voted to support the library\u2019s purchase and renovation of the historic St. Ursula Center, a former convent in the heart of the residential area.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cThe public overwhelmingly endorsed saving this building, saving this property, and moving the library here. The vote was \u201cyes\u201d over two-to-one, which is historic in New York when it means raising taxes,\u201d says Library Director Mike Firestone. \u201cThree thousand people came out to vote, which was more than ten times the number that voted on our budget. They wanted this new library space for the community.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Adaptable from the beginning<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>

The old library building, just over a block away, was only 10K sq. ft. and offered just one meeting room and a very small children\u2019s area. After the purchase of the St. Ursula Center in 2019, plans immediately began to convert it to a modern 28K sq. ft. library. Intending to serve all possible needs of the community, designers planned multiple meeting spaces, a maker space, a large children\u2019s room, a caf\u00e9, and uniquely, an eight-acre outdoor discovery center with story paths and fitness paths. However, as the design was underway, something completely unforeseen happened: a global pandemic shut down the Bayport-Blue Point Public Library and the entire world.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cWhen the project was pitched to the community, we had goals and plans for what we thought the public would want,\u201d says Firestone. \u201cBut once construction was underway, we had to pivot and adjust our plan to adapt to how the world was changing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

The question became: how does a library that is being custom designed to serve as a community space meet the needs of that community when the doors must remain closed?<\/span><\/p>

\u201cWe shut down in March of 2020 and didn\u2019t even begin offering curbside pickup until the end of May,\u201d says Firestone. \u201cWe\u2019d been a 3M and Bibliotheca<\/a> customer for years and had received tremendous support as we planned the new library. We\u2019d already decided to put three selfChecks<\/a> in the new building to accommodate patrons who would be using this much larger space. I wondered if there was a Bibliotheca solution that could help us manage this new reality as well.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

Serendipitously, Bayport-Blue Point\u2019s need coincided with the release of Bibliotheca\u2019s remoteLocker outdoor<\/a> pickup locker solution.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cI called our sales rep and asked, \u2018What have you got for me?\u2019 He said, \u2018We\u2019ve got this great solution, but it\u2019s actually not on the market yet,\u2019\u201d says Firestone. \u201cBut he made some calls, got us in the queue, and that\u2019s how we got to be one of the first libraries in the US to pilot the outdoor locker.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

The remoteLocker outdoor<\/a>, a weather-resistant version of the standard remoteLocker, allows libraries to offer 24\/7 library holds pickup in parking lots, community green spaces, or anywhere else with electricity and internet access. <\/span><\/p>

The intuitive touchscreen makes it easy for patrons to retrieve holds by scanning their library card, and the remoteLocker\u2019s ability to integrate with uniFi+<\/a>, Bibliotheca\u2019s library communication solution, means libraries can broadcast important information and promote services and events outside the library walls.<\/span><\/p>

With the help of a COVID-19 relief grant, the library installed the remoteLocker outdoor<\/a> solution just outside the main doors of the new library building.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cWe learned a lot with shutting down and reopening. Implementing pickup lockers became a no-brainer,\u201d says Firestone. \u201cIt means that during nights, weekends, holidays, or, God forbid, even future pandemics, we can serve our community. And customer service is the driving force behind everything we do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The best of both worlds: human touch and technology<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>

The new Bayport-Blue Point Public Library officially opened to the public in December 2021. Within weeks, library usage was off the charts. In a community with a total population of just 14,000, the library welcomed 11,000 visitors in one month alone.<\/span><\/p>

The remoteLocker<\/a> is listed in the library\u2019s ILS as the \u201cafter-hours hold locker\u201d pickup location. Before staff could even publicize the new service, patrons were discovering the lockers on their own, reserving materials online, and picking them up without assistance.<\/span><\/p>

Both the remoteLocker<\/a> and the new selfChecks<\/a> are popular with patrons. However, Firestone is quick to say that Bayport-Blue Point offers all the conveniences of a modern library, but it still prides itself on old-fashioned human connection.\u00a0 <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

\u201cWe are a small community, the kind of place where people know our staff as neighbors and want to have a conversation about the grandkids,\u201d says Firestone. \u201cAnd coming out of the pandemic and into this brand-new facility, a lot of people want to come in, see each other in person, and get a look at what their tax dollars paid for.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cBut some people are never going to want to go back to seeing people face-to-face, and we want to continue to serve them. We also have patrons who take the train into Manhattan to work and don\u2019t get back into town until we\u2019re closed; the locker makes the library accessible to them as well.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cWe are here to serve the public. We just keep anticipating their needs and giving them what they want. It drives us every day because we know there\u2019s more that people can get out of the library. From day one, the Bibliotheca team has been behind us and supported us with any vision, need, or idea we\u2019ve had. It\u2019s been a real win-win relationship.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\u201cWe are here to serve the public. We just keep anticipating their needs and giving them what they want. It drives us every day because we know there\u2019s more that people can get out of the library. From day one, the Bibliotheca team has been behind us and supported us with any vision, need, or idea we\u2019ve had. It\u2019s been a real win-win relationship.\u201d\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMike Firestone<\/span>Library Director<\/span><\/cite>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Explore how Bayport-Blue Point Library used Bibliotheca\u2019s tech to increase access, enhance service, and create a flexible, community-driven space.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":66548,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"blog-post","footnotes":""},"categories":[74,78,105],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-66546","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-library-stories","category-blog","category-library-experience"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66546","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66546"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66546\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66546"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66546"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bibliotheca.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66546"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}