Rockford’s new downtown library will help city create essential ‘third place’

During my time at the Rockford Housing Authority, I became intently focused on the value of place.

I was fascinated with the design thinking addressed in “The Third Teacher: 79 Ways You Can Use Design to Transform Teaching & Learning”. This book intends to ignite discussion about environment as an essential element of learning. I was hooked. Today, I am excited because I can bring this mindset to all the work I do as the Illinois Market President for Gorman and Company.

Today, we see placemaking taking a lead role in the restoration of places—like downtowns, riverfronts, and historic buildings and districts. Placemaking means creating places through public engagement and focusing on transforming public spaces to strengthen the connections between people and their environment. I see a very distinct connection between the Third Teacher design concepts and the ideals of placemaking.

Despite both “best practice” efforts for the creation of public places, some in Rockford feel we do not deserve high quality, intently designed community assets. I beg to differ, and will reason we need more high quality, highly engaging public assets accessible for all to continue our renaissance as a desirable city.

Both design thinking for the purpose of learning and placemaking are evident in Rockford’s CRE81V mural program, its public art installations, the restoration of historic buildings like the Embassy Suites by Hilton Rockford Riverfront, and now our state-of-the-art public library.

I hear and see great accolades for the projects completed through this design and placemaking lens. These efforts have placed us on more “best of lists” for living, retiring, dining, exploring, and visiting. We have garnered regional, statewide, national, and international attention for the recent high-quality investments made in our community. We need to keep this momentum going and a focus on building a state-of-the-art library should be included in our desires to raise the bar on Rockford investments.

World-wide, fundamental city planning efforts to reinvigorate metropolitan areas include specific steps to create and cultivate a community’s “third place,” what I see as the intersection of the ideas and ideals of the Third Teacher and Placemaking.

Coined by sociologist Ray Oldenburg more than 30 years ago, a third place is a space that has been proven essential in developing civic engagement, a civil society, and democracy while establishing a sense of belonging.

By definition, a third place must be relaxed and inviting and most importantly, a powerful third place must be accessible to all in a community. The Rockford Public Library has played this role in our community for 150 years and with the new building on the horizon, located on the western shore of the Rock River, it will only enhance inclusionary efforts in our city.

Greenspace, in the form of public parks are not the only places for community members to gather. In our part of the country, providing welcoming, highly functioning indoor space is paramount to our residents’ quality of life on a year-round basis. The library’s offerings of materials, programs, and services to everyone within our community in a well-designed, beautiful physical environment will positively impact many of the very areas that our community has been making great strides to improve; cultural offerings, lifelong learning, civic engagement, jobs training, sense of belonging, unity, equity, and inclusion.

The riverfront replacement main library building, beautifully designed to deliver services to all in our community, will improve the city’s infrastructure well-beyond the improvements made by addressing the environmental concerns that prompted the construction years ago. The new library’s design features multiple views of the river, and the land on the banks of the river will be beautifully landscaped greenspace where library customers can further enjoy the beauty of its riverfront location.

The new library’s design, based on the needs library users presented in numerous listening sessions and surveys, is smaller and more efficient than the building which stood at 215 Wyman five years ago.

It will serve our community as it is today, with thousands of residents choosing to see Rockford in a new light of opportunity and as it will be tomorrow, a region of opportunity, innovation and desirability.

Ron Clewer is a Rockford resident. He is the Illinois Market President for Gorman & Compan