We will use this page to give you updates on news and information regarding our new library building.
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Focus Groups
Make your voice heard! This is your chance to shape the future of the Libraries of Foster with your input and feedback.
We plan to have another focus group session over Zoom; stay tuned for more information.
A Note from the Director
Every year, at our annual meeting, it is our great honor to take the time to reflect on the successes and achievements of the library.
This past year, however, has felt like an enormous departure from our usual business of improving service and providing essential resources. This year, we have expanded our mission to include hiring a building consultant and electing a building committee. Along with the staff and the board, we have begun the work of building a new library on the land that we have purchased. It’s time.
I want to address the sadness that many people have expressed about moving the library. It is surprising how many feel that building a new library is a loss– that we’re losing the charming, one-room schoolhouses that have served as our libraries for so long. They worry that by replacing them with a new structure, we are erasing history and taking something away from the town.
The staff, the board, and I are aware of the historical significance of our current buildings. We love them as much as you do. However, we cannot view building a new library as a loss. The real tragedy, the real loss, would be in not having a library at all in our town.
If we don’t commit to this project, we simply won’t have a library at all in Foster. I know that sounds dramatic, but it’s true. The biggest challenge our libraries face is fundamental: access. Libraries are committed to providing access: to materials, ideas, assistance, and a safe, inviting space for all. Our current libraries limit physical access. They are not ADA compliant and therefore do not meet the minimum standards for state funding by the Office Library and Information Services. Without funding we cannot continue to operate. The only way to ensure Foster has a library is to build a new one.
Limited physical access is not the only challenge. On a daily basis, we are faced with issues of inadequate space, energy inefficiency, constant repairs, and mouse infestation as well as limited parking and foot traffic challenges. You, our friends and neighbors, deserve better. It is our intention to deliver that to Foster.
In addition to building a new library, we plan to develop our nearly 13 acres into a playground, a community garden, walking trails, a cafe, a theater, an outdoor venue for concerts, festivals and a farmer’s market. We’re dreaming big. And we believe we can make it happen.
We want to invite everyone in Foster to come together to create a community center with a charming new purpose-built library at its center: the kind of library the nobody even knows they need, but wait until you see it! We want you to be a part of this process, to share your vision of what for yourselves and for future generations. This project will need many hands working together, we will do amazing things.
Jayne Lear, October 2025
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do we need a new library?
- Our buildings are historical… but that means that they were not built with ADA compliance in mind. We stand to lose state funding if this is not remedied.
- Our collection is currently split across two facilities, as is our staff and resources.
- A new facility, built from the ground up, will allow us to design a space that fits its function, instead of retrofitting a building that was never intended to be a 21st-century public library.
- A modern library will last several more generations, and can be upgraded to meet the needs of the public for years to come.
Where will the new library be?
The Libraries of Foster have purchased twelve acres of land on Route 6 (Danielson Pike), just west of Saint Paul The Apostle Church.
What will the new space be like?
That’s up to you! We have some ideas, but we want to hear what the community’s needs are.
How can I help?
- Message LetsBuildIt@fosterlibraries.org with your comments and questions.
- Join our upcoming public meetings to collaborate on a vision. (Keep an eye on this page for dates and times.)
- Visit the library and hang a wish on our Wishlist Tree!