Bayview Branch

Bayview is tucked in a corner next to a fire station in southern Richmond right off Interstate 580. The neighborhood is quiet and feels safe, and the atmosphere inside is similar. Striped wall-to-wall carpeting covers the floor of the library’s single room and bright blue and multi-colored cartoonish couches and chairs provide comfortable seating. Everything is impeccably clean. The library parking lot can hold only four or five cars, but street parking is abundant.

Four fast computers sit on a central table in the branch, available for Internet use, word processing or searching the library collection. The children’s corner at Bayview has two computers reserved just for youth – library staff say they tend to descend on the branch when school gets out.

While the Bayview’s children’s collection is its highlight, the branch also hosts a diverse teen section with a mix of the latest vampire stories and classics from Charles Dickens and Mark Twain. Its reference section is small but includes essentials and has a number of resources on biographical history of African Americans.

Bayview doesn’t have a lot of DVDs, but patrons can find some new releases like Milk and High School Musical 3. The VHS collection provides more options. The audio collection consists of a handful of CDs, of varying genres, and a few books on tape. Magazine lovers will find only a few periodicals to choose from.

Staff at Bayview have time, patience, and the knowledge to help. Although your best bet is to get there before school gets out.

Bayview has children’s story time every Monday at 10:30 a.m. and an adult book club that meets on the second Tuesday of each month.

Bayview hours:

Monday: 10:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Tuesday: 1:30 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Wednesday: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Thursday: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Friday, Saturday, Sunday: CLOSED