Ilsley 100 Community Updates from Jim Gish

Special Preview of Ilsley Library Design Ideas!

Town Hall Theater, Wednesday, August 9, 6:30 PM

Can you believe it’s been nearly three years now since we reopened downtown Middlebury following the 10-week closure of Main Street and Merchants Row? What a day that was!

Hundreds of us gathered downtown on a September Friday of sparkling sunshine and blue skies to mark the end of the hardest part of our downtown bridge and rail project and to celebrate our community. Something we truly needed after that first difficult Covid lockdown period.

Fast forward to August 2023 and a new reason to gather as a community. Three architectural firms are set to preview their ideas for the future of Ilsley Public Library this Wednesday evening at 6:30 PM at our favorite downtown venue, Town Hall Theater.

You may remember that I joined the Ilsley 100 Project Team a year and a half ago to help develop plans for addressing our 100-year-old library’s shortcomings—and to explore what Middlebury and our surrounding communities might need in a renovated and expanded public library. Things like new and inviting community meeting spaces, quiet reading areas, and a hub for children and teens no longer relegated to a basement.

Your Voice Is Important!

I really hope you’ll be able to join me and members of our community for a fun evening and a unique opportunity to get an up-close look at some very exciting ideas for the future of our downtown library. Bring your ideas to the event—they truly matter!

And two or three years from now, we may have another good reason to come together as a community and celebrate another reopening!

Jim Gish