Noyes Library Launches Major Campaign

In its 120th year of existence, the Noyes Library for Young Children is set to launch a campaign to raise funds for a long-awaited renovation and expansion project. 

The Make More Noyes! Campaign, organized by the Noyes Children’s Library Foundation, will officially begin this Saturday, with a birthday gala and benefit auction at the Kensington Town Hall.  

The event will feature live music from the local swing and jazz band Night & Day, in addition to a light buffet, wine and dessert reception, and silent auction.  Local author Jeff Kinney, best known for the bestselling children’s series Diary of a Wimpy Kid, will be the honorary chair for the event. 

According to Jan Jablonski, co-president of the foundation, donations to the campaign will be used to double the available space at the library by adding a basement and finishing the second floor. A second part of the building, a Rapunzel-style elevator tower, will also be built next to the building, with a glass walkway connecting the two structures.

“Our goal is to make it so the library is accessible to everyone and can be enjoyed by even more people,” said Jablonski.  

According to Jablonski, the currently designed library has two major flaws. The library is not fully compliant with ADA standards for children in wheelchairs, as there are no elevators or ramps and not enough floor space. In addition, the only available storage space is on the unfinished second floor, and librarians must climb a vertical ladder to reach the storage rooms. 

“It’s an amazing place, and everybody should be able to go there,” said Jablonski.

Built in 1893, the one-room library—now a historic landmark—sits on its own triangular meadow of grass in downtown Kensington, surrounded by classic Victorian homes. According to librarian Susan Modak, the building has always been used as a library, but it was only after the Kensington Park branch of the Montgomery County Public Libraries was completed in 1969 that Noyes was designated as a children’s-only library. 

“It really is unique,” said Modak. “It’s the only library like this locally and only one of about ten nationally that is designed to be used only by young kids.” 

According to Modak, the library has maintained its original design, with only a few minor changes since 1893. One of the most significant was the enclosure of a front porch to add more space inside. 

“There have been minor changes occasionally, but this renovation would be the most significant in the library’s history,” said Modak, who has worked at Noyes for five years.

In the 1990s, there was discussion of closing down the library, but community opposition—led by the Noyes Foundation—kept the library open. It is now open three days a week: Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, all from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

The Noyes Library has contained 976 square feet of finished space since its birth 120 years ago, but that will change with this renovation. After the completion of two stories of extra rooms and the addition of an external tower, that space will increase to 2,287 square feet.

According to Jablonski, the extra rooms in the basement and second floor will be used for storage and workspace, programs and activities, and rotating displays.

“We’re working within the historic footprint of the library to create a space that can be used by more people for even more purposes,” she said. 

Tickets for the April 20 birthday gala and auction can still be purchased for $50 online at http://www.noyeslibraryfoundation.org/.  

Editor's Note: This article has been corrected to note that author Jeff Kinney will be the honorary chair for the April 20 gala, not the host, as the article originally stated.