Lovely light, fun art and a drive-thru: Look at the new Merriam Plaza library branch

Visitors to the newly opened branch of the Johnson County Library will notice the Merriam Plaza location shares a parking lot and a seating area with the Merriam Community Center. In fact, door to door, only 250 feet span the entrances of the buildings.

So it was essential to ensure administrators at the center and the new branch, at 6120 Slater St., coordinated with each other.

County librarian Tricia Suellentrop said the library consulted with the community center about when it was busiest to make sure there would be enough space in the garage for both entities.

The two also worked together to be sure they weren’t duplicating programming. For example, since the community center has a large public art space, the library has a smaller area for it.

“We don’t need to offer competing things,” Suellentrop said.

She said they’re also planning to cross-promote and support each other’s events.

Merriam Plaza, which opened March 20, replaces the recently closed Antioch branch.

Visitors will have access to the same collection of material that was available at Antioch, as well as the same number of public computers.

Antioch was already set to be replaced as part of the library system’s master plan when the city of Merriam got in touch about eight years ago to see if they’d be interested in collaborating on a new community center campus. The library previously worked with Lenexa and Shawnee when building two other newer library branches.

A lot of thought went into the inside design of the library. Planners really wanted natural light, without too much glare from direct sunlight. Angled windows and a north-facing glass front combined with light monitors in the center’s ceiling achieve that.

The angled windows sit above reading nooks and study desks.

“We’re always interested in a building that is full of whimsy and interesting visually but also maybe sparks curiosity, maybe sparks discovery,” Suellentrop said.

This spirit even extends to the bathrooms, where the walls have bright colors interspersed with text from Winnie the Pooh books.

“We’re trying to infuse literacy everywhere. Little kids love to notice, ‘Oh, that’s my initial. I know that letter. I know that word.’ So how do we infuse that everywhere? The bathroom should not be overlooked,” Suellentrop said.

Practicality was also a concern. Suellentrop said they chose materials that looked fun but were durable. That means all the furniture is liquid repellent and easily sanitized if necessary.

The planners kept different needs in mind when selecting furniture, so a selection of seating — wide, narrow, tall, short, soft and firm — accommodates a variety of needs.

Those concerned with environmental impact have a few things to like about the new library. The $13.68 million building is all-electric and comes with a silver level Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

Part of that is due to its green roof. While there’s no public access to the roof, the surface contains about 7,000 plants, all native species. The hope is that this will be “creating a whole habitat for birds, creatures, butterflies — you name it,” Suellentrop said.

Paying tribute to local history, the library’s meeting room is named for Mary and Alfonso Webb, whose case to integrate the South Park schools in 1949 helped lead to the landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka integration case.

A colorful mural by local artist Emily Alvarez keeps the room visually inspiring.

In addition to the large meeting room, two four-person study rooms have monitors that can connect to laptops, as well as whiteboard walls.

One improvement the new location has over the Antioch branch is a covered drive-thru pick-up window.

“We knew that we always wanted to add a drive-thru when possible,’ Suellentrop said. “Every new building that we build, one of the first things we think about is, ‘How can a drive-thru be incorporated?’”

She said they especially wanted it to be convenient for elderly visitors and people with young families who might find going inside the building a challenge.

Behind the scenes, the library also has an automatic sorting machine to help streamline the returns process.