Packed opening for new library

The new library’s first guests check out the view and the books. Photo

In 1904, Manhattan Beach had a dozen year round residents, according to Neptunian Woman’s Club President Elaine Trotter. The pioneers collected 255 books and set up a library at 14th Street and the Strand that was open on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

“We’ve come a long way from that very small beginning,” Trotter told a crowd of a couple hundred gathered on the grass of the new library’s plaza for the building’s opening Friday.

In 1913, the club decided to become part of the county library system, which had 85 branches, according to Trotter. At the time, there were 1,100 books in the city’s library and 143 library cards.

There have been bumps along the way, like when the county continued collecting tax from the city as though it had two libraries after shutting down one.

But no one was talking about them Friday as crowds pushed inside the new building. Some swiveled in the chairs on the second floor overlooking the Pacific; some played outside on the grass; and some even checked out books.

In the introduction delivered before the public was allowed inside, which included remarks made by State Assemblymember David Hadley, Supervisor Don Knabe, Mayor Wayne Powell and Head County Librarian Margaret Todd, among others, multiple people stressed that the library had been completed on time and under budget.

Supervisor Don Knabe cuts the ribbon on the new library. Photo

Knabe, who helped pave the way for the $26.3 million library by agreeing to earmark the extra taxes paid by the city for its use, called the building the “crown jewel of Manhattan Beach” and said that he wanted to update every library in his district.

“A library is not a luxury, but a necessity,” he said. “They’re used now more than ever.” ER