County’s first three-story public library taking shape

Downtown Doral is set to welcome the new Doral Branch Library for patrons to use and enjoy.

The three-story library, at 5360 NW 84th Ave., will include books, technology and a terrace. It is expected to open its doors in June 2025.

The library is rising across from Doral’s City Hall, near schools and retail stores, said Ray Baker, director of the Miami-Dade Public Library System. It will be an amenity for the neighborhood.

“The first floor is going to have a kind of a multipurpose room area there that we’ll be using for different events and programs throughout the year,” said Mr. Baker. “The second floor will be mostly focused on the children and teens area. Within that area, we’ll also have a YOUmedia, which is kind of our digital learning space where people can get access to 21st century technologies – from sound recording, to making podcasts, to classes on digital photography. Also, the children’s room will have a dedicated reading area for children on that floor.”

“The third floor will be really the adult-oriented area,” he said, “also a reading room, places to use public computers. It’ll have an outdoor reading terrace that people can enjoy that overlooks the park. It’s a small piece of property, but three stories of areas that are dedicated for different age groups and backgrounds and uses. We think it’s going to be a nice layout.”

A sensory-friendly room will also be included in the library.

Two years ago, said Mr. Baker, Miami-Dade Public Library was certified as an autism-friendly library system by the University of Miami Center for Autism and Related Disabilities for having all employees “trained and working with neurodiverse individuals throughout the community, and this will be one of our first spaces where we add a sensory-friendly room to have certain types of programming and certain types of spaces for people who are potentially on the spectrum or neuro diverse to have a space within the library that’s dedicated to them.”

The new library will be replacing another library in Doral.

Since the early 2000s, said Mr. Baker, space has been leased for the current Doral library, which is about 3,500 square feet. When the new library opens, the current location, which is also in Downtown Doral, will be closed. It is serving as a placeholder until the new branch is ready.

Additionally, a new Doral library was part of the county’s Building Better Communities Bond Program two decades ago, said Mr. Baker. The new Doral library is one of the final projects in the general obligation program being brought to fruition.

The community is expected to collaborate more as the library has opened the possibility of gatherings taking place there.

Comparing the new library to the existing 3,500 square feet branch, said Mr. Baker, having an extra 16,500 square feet, the number of meeting rooms and gathering spaces that will be included within the new branch, will allow more opportunities to include amenities such as the “homework help program, where kids get free tutoring in person in the library. It will have the ability to have a lot more programming with nonprofit organizations that want to use the library to get the word out about the services and programs they offer.”

This aspect is different from what they have now, said Mr. Baker, due to the small space. A large community room in which these activities can take place is not something they have now. “Having two or three of them in this branch will be a gamechanger in terms of our ability to collaborate with the rest of the community.”

Each of the county’s libraries are different, said Mr. Baker. However, people rely on certain services when they come to the library such as “an outstanding collection of books and library materials,” which will be available at the new library.

“The YOUmedia space is something that we don’t have in all of our branches; I think this would be our seventh one that we’ve incorporated into a library,” said Mr. Baker. “That will be different about it…. I think this will be our first three-story location, and I think that’s reflective of that land is getting harder to find and you have to find creative ways to incorporate libraries into smaller pieces of land nowadays. The outdoor terrace on the third floor, I don’t know that we have another location that has a terrace like that that will be overlooking an amenity like the park and Downtown Doral.”

Mr. Baker said that all of the county’s libraries cater to people of all ages and backgrounds. The more space they have, the more they are able to tailor the programming for specific areas, “and we think that we’ve struck a pretty good balance in our design for this branch, and just based on what we’ve seen from our other existing Doral library, we think that we have a pretty good layout here.”

Writing on paper, skimming through books, and getting lost in a novel have become rarities in today’s society. However, the Doral Branch Library is catering to the new generation as it incorporates books, technology and up-to-date amenities.

The library will be one of the county system’s most technologically advanced branches, said Mr. Baker. This is something that has been built upon as renovations are done to existing locations.

Remaining environmentally conscious has also played a role in the design of the library.

“All county buildings are required to have leadership in energy and efficiency design as part of the design project,” said Mr. Baker, “and this will be a LEED silver certified building, meaning it’s going to be an environmentally friendly building.”

Electric vehicle charging stations will be included, Mr. Baker said. “It will also have a cool roof built with energy efficient materials. We think that’s an important feature for the branch itself and putting a lens on climate-friendly buildings as we go forward.”