Southdale Library is an American public library. It is located in

Edina, Minnesota Edina ( ) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States and a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis. The population was 53,494 at the 2020 census, making it the 18th most populous city in Minnesota. Edina began as a small farming and mil ...

, United States. At 60,000 square feet, it is one of the largest in the

Hennepin County Library Hennepin County Library is a public library system serving Hennepin County, Minnesota, US. The current iteration of Hennepin County Library was formed by the merger of urban Minneapolis Public Library and suburban Hennepin County Library on Ja ...

system. The building is part of a complex that also houses district courts. The library offers materials in English,

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

, Somali,

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

, and

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

History

When the library opened in November 1973, it was the third largest public library in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

with a 200,000 volume collection. Southdale opened with audio-visual materials and equipment including computers, televisions, recorders, projectors, videotape equipment, and the ability to connect to six-channel copper loops to listen to audio materials via headphones. The library was initially among the libraries funded by Hennepin County after the State Legislature authorized the county’s long-range building program in 1969. This legislation created a 15-year program including $20 million, some of which helped fund the library. The library served as the headquarters of Hennepin County Library until the Ridgedale Library was built in 1982. Renovations were completed in several phases. The first phase was the expansion of their parking lot from September to November 1992. The next phase included expanding the interior for additional square footage to the library and upgrade to the building. The final phase was completed on January 1 to March 13, 1994. A new Southdale Library is in the planning stages. The new building will be shared with the Edina Art Center and is planned to open in Summer 2027.

Art

''Untitled'' by Christopher Tully is the one prominent piece of art featured in the Southdale Library children's area. "Untitled" is an installation of several animal sculptures including fish, birds and hippopotami. Christopher Tully’s sculptures are displayed throughout the children's area. Tully is a Minnesota artist who creates large scale sculptures and installation pieces of whimsical animal characters and nature scenes.

References

External links

Southdale Library
{{Coord, 44, 52, 32, N, 93, 19, 11, W, display=title Libraries in Minnesota Edina, Minnesota Hennepin County Library