A couple of times a week, a van rolls up in the parking lot of the Lucile Bluford Library. </p><p>Waiting patiently for the vehicle’s arrival are library patrons who live in the neighborhood. Right there in the parking lot, patrons get the books and magazines they’ve pre-ordered. </p><p>Since the library at 3050 Prospect Ave. has been closed for several months, that van has been keeping people connected to the materials they need. </p><p>The library is undergoing a $1.3 million renovation, work that’s expected to take until November to complete, with the library reopening in February. Fortunately, the library is being renovated with the involvement of the community. </p><p>I toured the construction last week. </p><p>The entryway will display the history of the neighborhood. Library officials are meeting with a 15-member community advisory group that will help them with the exhibit.</p><p>“We want to hear the kind of history the neighborhood thinks should be presented,” said Henry Fortunato, director of public affairs for the Kansas City Public Library. “If we can make a neighborhood exhibit work here, then maybe we can make it work in other branches.”</p><p>Not far from the entrance will be a display with a bust honoring Lucile Bluford, the former publisher and editor of the Kansas City Call. </p><p>“We have the things we need to tell her story,” said Cheptoo Kositany-Buckner, deputy executive director for the Kansas City Public Library. “It will be prominently displayed.” </p><p>A south meeting room was once divided by a wall. That wall has been knocked down and the area has been expanded to create a much larger meeting room, where a new stage will be added. A large screen and video technology are part of the upgrade. </p><p>“The room is sizable enough to meet the needs of this community,” Kositany-Buckner said. </p><p>The library will have an area where DVDs can be checked out without involving employees. </p><p>Separate computer space is bound to be a plus with the public. </p><p>“The teens will have their own set of computers,” she said. “The pre-teens will have their own. And the adults will have their own.” </p><p>At most of the branches, books for teens and adults are combined. At the Lucile Bluford Library, teens will have a separate collection. </p><p>“We plan on celebrating the African-American culture in this facility,” she said. </p><p>The public library believes it is merely responding to the community it serves. </p><p>“We don’t need a cookie-cutter for all our communities,” said Kositany-Buckner. “There must be things that are unique to the neighborhoods we serve.” </p><p>With illiteracy a major issue in the black community, it’s about time someone asked neighbors what they want in a library. It’s refreshing to see the Kansas City Public Library trying its best to tailor a branch to the community it serves.