The Lafayette Library and Learning Center (LLLC) is a library and learning center in

Lafayette, California Lafayette (formerly La Fayette) is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. As of 2020, the city's population was 25,391. It was named after the Marquis de Lafayette, a French military officer of the American Revolutionary War. ...

that opened in 2009. The Lafayette Library and Learning Center is also home to the Glenn Seaborg Learning Consortium, a partnership with the region’s leading arts, culture, and educational institutions. The Center includes classrooms which host programs from local learning institutions. It is a part of the

Contra Costa County Library The Contra Costa County Library is the public library system in Contra Costa County, California, United States. There are 26 community libraries including the NRHP-listed Martinez Library, access to electronic information via a website, over ...

system. The Glenn Seaborg Learning Consortium, named after chemist

Glenn Seaborg Glenn Theodore Seaborg (; April 19, 1912February 25, 1999) was an American chemist whose involvement in the synthesis, discovery and investigation of ten transuranium elements earned him a share of the 1951 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. His work in ...

, aims to provide materials, archives, workshops, exhibits, K-12 curricula, lectures, films, and discovery centers from many local institutions such as the UC System,

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in Knowland Park, John Muir Health,

Lindsay Wildlife Museum Lindsay Wildlife Experience, formerly known as Lindsay Wildlife Museum, is a family museum and wildlife rehabilitation center in Walnut Creek, California. Lindsay is the first wildlife hospital established in the United States, and a popular fami ...

, California Shakespeare Theater,

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, John F. Kennedy University, St. Mary’s College, and the UC Institute of Governmental Studies. The mission statement says that the center aims to be a cultural and learning center throughout the community, expanding upon the usual role of a library.

History

The Lafayette Library and Learning Center was first proposed to the City of Lafayette at the end of 2003. The city voted to support the Library in January 2004. In 2004 the membership of the Glenn Seaborg Learning Consortium was finalized and funding was pursued. In November 2004 the project was awarded $11.9M by the

State of California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. In 2004–2005 City officials brokered a deal with the local veterans to build a new Veterans Memorial Building at the west end of Lafayette and to take over the former Veterans Memorial Building in the downtown area for use by the new Library. The new Veterans Memorial Building was completed late in 2005. Meanwhile, community donations were raised which matched the State grant of $11.9M. Construction bids were gathered and the ground breaking for the new Library occurred on April 20, 2007. During this period Seaborg Consortium programming began using the existing library space and the new Lafayette Veterans Memorial Building. On November 14, 2009, the doors of the Lafayette Library and Learning Center opened for the first time. Since that day in November, the LLLC has hosted over 400 programs annually. Topics ranged from Story Times, to the life of a bug, to the historic 2008 Presidential campaign as related by New York Times bestselling author

Mark Halperin Mark Evan Halperin (born January 11, 1965)Mark Halperin. ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Gale Biography In Context. is an American journalist, currently a host and commentator for Newsmax TV. Halperin previously worked as ...

. Nearly 1,500 visitors pass through the front doors of the Library every day – a 300% increase from daily attendance at the old library.

References

External links

Lafayette Library and Learning Center

Friends of the Lafayette Library and Learning Center

Building Blocks for a New Library, San Francisco Chronicle
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lafayette Library And Learning Center Library buildings completed in 2009 Public libraries in California Lafayette, California Museums established in 2009 Buildings and structures in Contra Costa County, California Education in Contra Costa County, California 2009 establishments in California