Sandusky Library announces new logo

SANDUSKY — Check out this new look. Sandusky Library is reaching out to the community with a new logo and a new emphasis on connecting with patrons at local events. The new logo has been placed on the library's home page and is being placed on social media accounts and at other places where the library interacts with the public, library director William Rutger said. "We wanted to stand out a little bit, remind people how great the library is," Rutger said. A fact sheet put out by Shea Alltmont, the library's community engagement manager, explains that the four blocks of color stacked on top of each other in the new logo are meant to represent two concepts: • A stack of books • The library's four main service areas: Sandusky, Perkins Township, Margaretta and Kelleys Island; Rutger said the library wants to remind everyone it serves not just Sandusky but the other three areas as well. The colors for the new font are meant to evoke the coastal area as well as the library's limestone building and clay roof titles, and the new logo also displays "fresh, modern, and highly readable fonts," Alltmont said. Expect to see the new logo at events, too. Rutger said library workers are being encouraged to promote the library at local gatherings. Recently, the library has been at Victory Kitchen and at a Perkins Schools event, and a presence is planned when the farmers market returns to downtown Sandusky. "You will continue to see us pop up at different places," he said. Other updates While Rutger has preserved the library's main offerings and aims to provide continuity, he's also made some tweaks. They're all designed to make the library easier to use and to bring attention to its many offerings. Among the updates: • The library has set up a new browsing area in front of the circulation desk. It's a "grab-and-go" display where people can spot new books and immediately check them out, Rutger said. The titles are being reserved initially for local patrons before being integrated into the CLEVNET network that serves Sandusky Library and other northern Ohio libraries. "The goal is to have some of the fresh, new popular titles available," Rutger said. • As previously announced, the Follett House Museum, a period mansion at 404 Wayne St., has been renamed the Sandusky History Museum at the Follett House. The displays at Follett House provide information on Sandusky's history, and the new name aims to make that more clear to potential visitors, Rutger said. On July 1, the library's 50th anniversary of owning the Follett House will be celebrated with an event, Rutger said. The museum opened on July 1, 1976, in an event tied to the country's bicentennial, just as historical events this year are being linked to the ongoing America 250 celebration. • Beginning at Kelleys Island, the library plans to follow the lead of other public libraries and set up lockers that can be accessed 24 hours a day to pick up library materials. Locations in Perkins Township and in Castalia are also being discussed. • Movies and the library's fiction section are being reorganized to make it easier to find titles in popular genres, such as science fiction and mysteries. DVDs have been reorganized into genres, and books will follow soon, Rutger said. • The audio-visual equipment at the library's main program room has been upgraded, so that events can be streamed online and can be recorded. Audio has been improved to make it easier to pick up questions from the audience. And three monitors have been added that can be used during meetings. • The library plans to expand its summer reading program with a dinosaur theme and has announced Trike Week for little ones. It's planned as an annual event that plays off the name of Ohio Bike Week, Sandusky's annual motorcycle festival. Trike Week will be May 29 through June 6 and will feature bike safety information and giveaways of bike helmets, while supplies last.