Stockton’s newest library celebrated its grand opening this week.
The Ursula Meyer Library held a grand opening event on Thursday, April 30, at 1461 E. Morada Lane next to Ronald E. McNair High School for the long-awaited library and community center in Northeast Stockton. Grand opening festivities included snow cones, face painting, food, 3D printed keychains, acrylic keychains, magna-tiles and buttons.
“This isn’t just a library. This is a place for the whole family,” District 1 Councilmember Michele Padilla said, adding that the new library and community center has a study area, private rooms, meeting rooms, wellness facilities, outside seating areas, as well as a recreational department.
“It’s really a multi-purpose community center (for) the whole family from toddlers all the way up to seniors,” Padilla said.
This is the first community center in District 1, according to Padilla.
“The city of Stockton has community centers throughout the city, like Van Buskirk, Stribley, Arnold Rue. However, District 1 never had its own community center,” she said. “Our HOA communities have community centers, but those are private property. This is a community center built by the city of Stockton for every single resident of Stockton.”
The Ursula Meyer Library will offer free library programs with no registration required. Events are planned nearly every day during the month of May.
Ursula Meyer Library programs schedule:
The community center will also be offering upcoming programs and classes such as Intro to Archery, Tumbling Time, Outdoor Fitness 101, Mindful Monday Morning, Pickleball and more.
“This is a place where people can come, meet people, build relationships, build partnerships, talk to one another, and just share a good time,” Padilla said.
Community at the grand opening
Lexie Kalbach, a Stockton resident and teacher at Lodi Adult School, attended the library’s grand opening on Thursday with her three children.
She said she has been going to Stockton libraries since her children were babies and has waited a long time for the library to open.
“We’re very excited,” she said.
Kalbach said she is involved with Friends of the Library and was also there to support the nonprofit.
“It’s so special for Stockton to have a new facility and another place to come, more activities to do,” Kalback said. “I hope the community uses it.”
Kalbach plans on visiting the library and center passing the word to her friends and students about the “fun programs” offered.
Alleli Coleman, a Stockton resident who lives near the new library, also attended the grand opening with her family. The mother of three, ages 6, 4, and 11 months, said she decided to attend to see what they had to offer for her children.
“I really wanted to check out the library,” Coleman said. “My kids love books and things like that.”
Coleman said she really liked the wellness center and the rock climbing wall for the children. She added that her husband liked the basketball court, which he will probably use.
“Everybody should come check it out just to have a nice place to hang out and everyone to be together, do activities together, and just to get the community together,” Coleman said.
Who is Ursula Meyer?
Thomas Freeman, program manager 3 with the Community Services Department, told The Record that the new library and recreation center took more than 10 years to build.
Freeman added the facility is dedicated to Ursula Meyer, a former library director.
“She was also a major advocate for libraries across the state and across the nation,” Freeman said. “She dedicated her life to libraries and literacy and youth and engagement in inclusive spaces.”
Meyer died at the age of 83 years-old in April 2011, The Record previously reported.
“This facility is truly envisioned by the community, funded by the community, and absolutely for the community. It was built with their words, their thoughts, their intentions in mind, and then built to bring them, everyone, together to learn, to create, to have healthy lifestyles, be resilient,” Freeman said. “It’s everything this community embodies.”
The library and community center hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 1 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and closed on Sunday. Both will close on Monday, May 25, in observance of Memorial Day.
To learn more about the Ursula Meyer Library and Community Center, visit ssjcpl.org.
Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers business and community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. To support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on The Record: New Ursula Meyer Library brings community center to northeast Stockton
Reporting by Angelaydet Rocha, The Stockton Record / The Record
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