Libraries
Signs of age are everywhere at the El Cerrito Library. Only two windows open, and there’s no air conditioning. Bloated linoleum tiles adhere to the floor with duct tape. The building has closed midday several times in recent years because of unsafe temperatures. “We sign forms every year acknowledging that there is asbestos,” manager Heidi Goldstein said Tuesday during a public tour hosted by the El Cerrito Library Task Force. The El Cerrito Library building opened in 1949 and has…
Farmers prepare the fields for winter in a lot neighboring the industrial metropolis of Richmond, Calif. They harvest the last of the tomatoes and basil and plant broccoli and brussels sprouts. Demand for food has never been higher, but thanks to groups such as Urban Tilth, people in Richmond are continuing to get fresh produce. As food insecurity racks Richmond’s low-income communities, farmers have become one of the residents’ saving grace. Urban Tilth, a Richmond-based farm dedicated to providing fresh…
The concept is simple: a handful of books in a wooden box, mounted in a public space. The books are free. Peruse the selection. Take a book if you’d like. Leave a book in its place if you can. Enjoy. Called the Little Free Library, these informal neighborhood lending libraries have popped up in front of schools, homes, parks, bike paths and cafes in all 50 states and more than 70 countries since a man named Todd Bol installed the…
Sixth grader Clemon Brown loves reading books, but he has a hard time finding books outside of school. “Two weeks ago, I was sitting in my room [and] I want to read a book,” Brown said. He said he wanted to visit a library, but his mom’s car wasn’t working at the time. Brown lives in North Richmond, almost three miles away from the nearest Richmond public library. “That’s really the difficulty,” Richmond Public Library Director Katy Curl said. “[We’re]…
As a second-year student at Contra Costa College, Mailen, 20, spends much of her time thinking about how she will fund her education.
Science and skateboards? It sounded incongruous, but to Angela Cox, Teen Librarian for the Richmond Public Library, it all made sense. Her vision came together on Thursday at The Science of Skateboard Physics at Nicholl Park on Macdonald Ave. in Richmond.
Grant funds new libraries for every Richmond kindergarten and kicks off campaigns to encourage reading.
The Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library opened just a couple months ago and it’s another community effort to grow food locally.
The Main Library has an urban feel and a lot more traffic than either of the branches. High ceilings and bare linoleum floors remind you that you’re in a government building, not a living room, and the only places to sit are at wooden tables and chairs. Patrons of Main are there to get things done, not to relax, and the noisy, bustling atmosphere reflects that. Most of the system’s collection is housed here, so for research purposes it is…