Rondo Library to close for renovations but safety concerns remain

St. Paul’s most-visited library will close for at least six months to move its bathrooms and front desk because of security concerns.

Community members have complained about drug use and people experiencing homelessness in the Rondo Community Library and its surrounding area in recent years, and library officials say they’re confident the $793,000 renovation can solve those problems.

But some Rondo neighborhood residents and library employees aren’t so sure.

“It had all the pluses,” said Artika Tyner, who grew up in the neighborhood, about the library. “But you now have issues that have been exacerbated over the years and nothing is functioning properly.”

Isaac Mielke, president of AFSCME Local 1842, which represents some St. Paul library workers, said Rondo employees were not consulted in the renovation plans and think other solutions should be examined instead.

“We don’t think moving the bathrooms will do anything,” said Mielke, who doesn’t work in the library but has spoken with people who do. “The staff who work in the building are the experts and are not being listened to.”

St. Paul Library Director Maureen Hartman said staff members have not been involved in the renovation process yet, since it’s still early. She said the changes will move the reception desk closer to the front door, allowing patrons to use the space more effectively.

Dates have not been set for the renovation, which could take up to a year.

Frank White, a Rondo neighborhood elder and St. Paul historian whose curated exhibits have been displayed at the library, doesn’t visit anymore because of the drug use he witnessed in the past.

He said he doubts the renovation will change the behavior at the library, located at Dale Street and University Avenue.

“The solution is really taking care of the negative activity that surrounds the area,” he said. “It’s disappointing that nothing really has been done.”

In August, Rondo reduced its hours on Fridays and Saturdays and closed on Sundays because of “ongoing challenges and resulting negative behavior in the area” that made it difficult “to adequately deliver safe and welcoming services,” according to library news releases.

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter said the overall role of the library system is changing.

“We are transitioning out of an era where we build libraries for books,” he said in an interview.

Carter said additional social services are key to the library’s mission in the 21st century. After COVID, some libraries across the U.S. hired social workers to help librarians provide more services to patrons as libraries’ roles shifted. St. Paul and Hennepin County libraries employ social workers.

St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry said officers continually patrol the area around the Rondo Library.

“This library isn’t broken,” Henry said. “Everyone’s committed to the idea that good enough isn’t good enough, and we’re always going to try to make it the best possible thing.”

“None of the things that typically should happen in the library are happening in the Rondo Library,” Tyner said. “It’s a disgrace.”

She said the renovation feels like a “misstep” and “a poor allocation and use of our limited city resources.”

Beth Burns, president of the Friends of the St. Paul Public Library, said problems are uncommon across the city’s system of more than a dozen libraries. More than 1.2 million people visited the libraries last year and less than 1% of the visits resulted in reports of problems, she said.

Because libraries are community spaces, she said “anything that is happening in our community, good or bad, is likely to come through the doors.”

Marvalyne Tripp, a volunteer tutor at the Rondo Library, said she’s excited about the renovation after having problems with her students accessing the bathrooms depending on the time of day.

The bathrooms will be moved farther into the building and the front desk will be pushed closer to the front door, Hartman said.

While Rondo Library is closed, the Hallie Q. Brown Community Center will provide library services.

The move will mean a decrease in square footage of 80%, though the community center will offer some version of all services offered at the library, Hartman said.

Benny Roberts, executive director of the Hallie Q. Brown Community Center, said he does not expect the safety concerns to follow the library across the interstate. He said the negative behavior is isolated at the Dale and University intersection and does not usually affect the community center.

The center is prepared either way and the security personnel from the library will be transferring to the center, he said.

“We, as community, can’t afford not to have a library,” he said. “It’s one of the most valuable assets you can have in a community.”