Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting at the Sewell Mill Library and Cultural Center came a month after the multi-use facility opened on Lower Roswell Road, next to where its predecessor, the East Marietta Library, once stood for nearly 50 years.
Pieces of the old building were distributed to the dozens of guests and dignitaries who crowded the new facility’s black box theater for presentations, and the honorary ribbon-cutting that followed.
As the long history of the venerable East Marietta building was recounted by several speakers, the vision for what’s replacing it was spelled out in excited detail.
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With more than 28,000 square feet, the Sewell Mill branch easily dwarfs East Marietta, which opened with 8,600 square feet in 1967.
But it’s the scope of the offerings at the new facility, and its joint association between the Cobb library and parks and recreation departments, that is novel, reflecting what Cobb commissioner Bob Ott described as the “phenomenal” vision of the staffers who saw the project through over several years.
“This truly is the library of the future,” said Julie Walker, the state librarian of Georgia.
In addition to traditional library space, the Sewell Mill branch includes the black box theater, an outdoor amphitheater and cultural “maker” space with digital audio and video recording equipment.
The theater offers regular film screenings and concerts will be a regular part of the schedule. There’s also a teen room and space for writers and filmmakers meet-ups, and classes in digital photography, podcasting, comics, art and music appreciation.
The entire Cobb Board of Commissioners, State Rep. Sharon Cooper, State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, former Cobb County Manager Dave Hankerson and appointees to the Cobb library and recreation boards were present for the event, which also included a special presentation to longtime Cobb Library Foundation board members Carol and Jim Ney.
For their financial support, the Neys were honored by having the Sewell Mill branch’s art gallery named after them, as well as an outdoor patio that adjoins the main reading room.
Cobb commission chairman Mike Boyce and his wife, Judy, also had a study room named in their honor. Boyce said they made a $5,000 donation, but to him, “it was self-evident” to support such a project.
“People are going to have to come see this to appreciate the benefits,” said Boyce. In his ribbon-cutting remarks, he said that “we have gone to great lengths to create a library that I am convinced is revolutionary.”
But its evolution has been a long one, primarily for financial reasons.
The Sewell Mill Library cost $10.6 million to build, with all but $2 million coming out of SPLOST funding (the rest came from state sources). Ott, who was first elected in 2008, said discussions about replacing the East Marietta Library predated his time on the commission.
He recalls hearing his District 2 predecessor, the late Joe Lee Thompson, say to him that a new library was inevitable. “Every year, he told me to be patient,” Ott said. “It’s coming. I don’t know if he thought it would be like this.”
Those plans were put on hold in the wake of the recession. Last fall, as commissioners were haggling over budget details, they temporarily delayed full funding of the Sewell Mill branch, which has additional staff positions.
Commissioner JoAnn Birrell of District 3 in Northeast Cobb also touched off a controversy by suggesting closure of the East Cobb Library due to the expanded Sewell Mill services.
Those positions were funded and the Sewell Mill library opened on Dec. 4. But as a new year beckons, commissioners are facing a projected $30 million shortfall for fiscal 2019. Soon, department heads will be asked to bring forth proposed budget cuts, and libraries and parks are certain to be among them.
What about those who may regard the Sewell Mill concept as an extravagance?
“Only if you consider your children and grandchildren as an extravagance,” said Boyce, who’s beginning his second year in office.
He noted that while those of an older generation may envision libraries in a more traditional, print-focused way, the multi-platform educational, intellectual and cultural options for younger people need to be accommodated.
“This is not the old library,” Boyce said.
The Sewell Mill Library and Cultural Center has the same address (2051 Lower Roswell Road) and the same hours as the former East Marietta Library:
- Monday-Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.;
- Thursday-Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.;
- Saturday, 1-6 p.m.;
- Closed Sunday.
