After months of planning, a small section of the Columbia Public Library grounds is being transformed into a native plant garden. This enhancement to our landscaping will add beauty to our neighborhood and also serve the library’s educational mission as a demonstration of how residents and businesses can add native plantings to their yards and grounds. The garden is located on the corner of Garth Avenue and Crestmere by the library’s south parking lot. A pathway welcomes visitors to walk through the garden and take a closer look.

The temporary location for the Callaway County Public Library opens April 1 at Churchill Plaza, 1855 N. Bluff Street, Fulton, near Walmart. There is a small browsing collection, and patrons can pick up holds and return materials.

As we begin a new year, the Daniel Boone Regional Library would like to pause and say thank you to our community. The services you value and rely on every day are made possible largely through one essential funding source: real and personal property taxes.

The Daniel Boone Regional Library has signed an agreement with Schnuck Markets, Inc. to install a set of self-service Library-To-Go lockers at its Battle Crossing store located at 5410 Clark Lane. The installation date is yet to be determined.

Planned replacement of the HVAC system at the Callaway County Public Library in Fulton requires the temporary closure of the building so the contractor can remove the old system and install the new one. The library will close March 30, and work is expected to last 90 days. A temporary library location will open at Churchill Plaza, 1855 N. Bluff Street near Walmart. The opening date will be dependent on how soon library materials can be moved to and set up in the plaza space. There will be a small browsing collection, and patrons can pick up holds and return materials.

Historic buildings are in constant need of upkeep to keep them functional and comfortable. In recent years, we’ve been struggling with properly heating and cooling the Fulton library building. Because of a generous gift from Helen Forsee, we are going to be able to replace the outdated HVAC system at the Callaway County Public Library this year.
In order to do this, the Callaway County Public Library will be CLOSED beginning March 30. We expect the work to take 90 days.

In 1886, a rags-to-riches steel tycoon decided to use some of his wealth to fund the construction of public library buildings all across the U.S. Over the next 31 years, 1,681 public libraries were built in this country with the help of Andrew Carnegie. Today, approximately 750 of those structures are still used as libraries, including the Callaway County Public Library in Fulton.

The Daniel Boone Regional Library recently installed another off-site book drop at The Callaway Bank at 1600 Chapel Hill Road in Columbia. In addition to book drops at all of its library locations, the library now has five offsite book drops in Columbia and one in Hallsville. People can return most items to these offsite units, including books, CDs, DVDs and other library materials. Book drops are emptied daily.

The library is free and open to everyone, but we know that for some, access to our services and facilities can be a greater challenge. We are always looking for ways to overcome barriers to our services. For many years, the library has offered assistance to those with mobility issues and vision and hearing disabilities. As we learn more about other challenges people face, the library is expanding our services to be even more inclusive and training staff about those challenges so we can better serve all of our friends and neighbors.

Tonya Hays-Martin was born and raised in Fulton and still calls it home. She and her husband live near Calwood, known locally as the Crossroads of the World. During her free time, she enjoys spending time with her two adult sons and one amazing granddaughter. As a librarian, she loves libraries, and has served on the DBRL Board of Trustees for 16 years.