Lee Public Library (Lee, New Hampshire)
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Staff at the Lee Public Library located in Lee, New Hampshire (pop. 4,481) have long sought to rework some of their building’s less accessible spaces. In 2022, they were in the midst of a large renovation project designed to make their bathroom and craft area ADA-compliant. But the money they had for this project “wasn’t enough to do all the things we wanted to do,” recalls Hayley Van-Gils, the library’s director.
Lacking funds to fully realize all their plans (which included the installation of a wheelchair accessible sink, a children’s sink, and handlebars around the bathroom’s toilet), Van-Gils decided to apply for a Libraries Transforming Communities (LTC): Accessible Small and Rural Communities grant. Knowing how hard it can be to find money for accessibility upgrades, they were thrilled when they learned their library’s application had been approved.
“It was important to all of us,” Van-Gils says, “that accessibility would be as easy [to achieve] as possible.”
But this was just the beginning of the process. After learning that they had received LTC funding, Van-Gils sought community input (a requirement of the grant) on how exactly to use these funds. Though they had their own ideas, staff also knew that they typically learned about the kinds of accommodations their patrons required only after they attended a library program. “It’s hard to know what people’s expectations are,” Van-Gils explains, adding that for most library programs, people “just turn up, and we do our best.”
In order to “be more inclusive,” Van-Gils knew that they’d need “more knowledge about people before they come in.” To learn about the community’s accessibility priorities, the library hosted a community conversation. Attendees consisted of a mix of professionals who routinely engage with people with disabilities (including an occupational therapist and a special education teacher) and others who regularly participate in library programs. After discussion, the group agreed to prioritize children’s needs.
These modifications were in line with the grant’s intent, which is to improve the accessibility of library facilities, services, and programs for people with disabilities. As such, the work began immediately. In addition to using LTC funds to make upgrades to their bathroom, the library installed a children’s sink in the library’s craft area and updated both this area and their story corner.
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The library’s goal was to “include all children in all activities and have it so that they could easily clean up and join in.” And now, the children’s room is “the nicest room in the library.” The renovation has allowed them to think about programming in the craft area, which they never had before. “We’re able to offer so much more in this room,” Van-Gils says, adding that more patrons are participating in programming that takes place in this space — and staying in the area even when activities aren’t happening there. As this suggests, getting an LTC grant allowed Lee Library to build a multi-generational space that works for children and caregivers alike.
“To do something like this, where even something as simple as handwashing is easy for everybody, that was a big deal.”
Completing this project has given Van-Gils and Judy Belanger, the youth services librarian, a broader perspective on accessibility for children. Previously seeing this as “just this one thing,” they now realize that accessibility “encompasses so much more” — that it’s ultimately about inclusivity (a point made repeatedly during their community conversation).
Moving forward, library staff are interested in pursuing additional accessibility projects that benefit the widest swath of people. After securing a second LTC grant, the library now plans to update its front entrance, and is engaging wheelchair users and others with mobility disabilities to choose the right automatic door. They’ve also applied for funding to build an ADA-compliant ramp into the library walkway and have forged a new partnership with a University of New Hampshire program called Northeast Passage, which provides health services to people with disabilities.
Thanks to LTC funding, opportunities for further accessibility upgrades at Lee Library are now abundant. “This grant has made things more usable for the general population,” says Van-Gils. Agreeing with this assessment, Belanger adds that “everybody has benefited.”
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