April 29, 2023
Spanish Fork, UT — Spanish Fork City officials held a ribbon-cutting and dedication ceremony of Library Hall on Saturday, followed by the grand opening events inside the library with hundreds of families in attendance.
“Today was one of the best days we’ve ever experienced at the library!” said Library Director Scott Aylett. “We were overwhelmed with the excitement from the community and all of those who participated in our grand opening.”
Speakers during the ceremony included Aylett, Finance Director Jordan Hales, City Manager Seth Perrins, former mayor Steve Leifson, Mayor Mike Mendenhall, and Lt. Governor Deidre Henderson as well as representatives from the architect and general contractor.
Henderson, who is a Spanish Fork resident, spoke of the memories she had in the old Spanish Fork library, and her familiar roots that are buried in the Spanish Fork cemetery.
Mayor Mendenhall concluded his remarks about building a village with a prayer of dedication of the building.
After the dedication, dignitaries and Miss Spanish Fork cut the ribbon and welcomed thousands of people inside the building. Once inside, families were greeted by various movie characters and had a chance to get new library cards or their faces painted. Many attendees also took advantage of scientific demonstrations and various story times.
Fun events weren’t the only reason crowds gathered in the library, today was the first day it was open since March 25, and many people just wanted to check out materials or collect the items they had on hold. In all, there were over 3500 items checked out, breaking the single-day circulation record!
A portion of Library Hall is dedicated to other civic functions including the finance department and utility billing, and a new city council chambers. A ribbon cutting for the city council chambers will be held at 5:45 p.m. on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, preceding the first Spanish Fork City Council meeting.