Merger vote revives plan for a larger library in downtown Mars

On Election Day, the Mars Area Public Library had to put its own programming on hold so voters could use its meeting room. The vote that day may help give the library enough room to do both.

Voters in Mars Borough and Adams Township approved the merger Tuesday, reopening a path for the library to move into the building that houses NexTier Bank in downtown Mars. Library leaders say the move could keep the library downtown while giving it space for more children’s programs, quiet tutoring rooms and a larger collection.

“It provides us a really great path forward for our future,” library Director Janae Callihan said. “We were working on that path towards that new facility. And that path now is reopened to us to explore.”

A library running out of room

Board President Jennifer Bainbridge said the library has looked for a larger home for years. As the community has grown, she said, programs frequently have waiting lists and the parking lot fills up. Inside, teachers tutor students, Girl Scouts hold meetings and adults attend evening programs, all in a building that still needs room for people to browse and check out books.

“We’ve just really needed a bigger space to foster the growth of the community,” Bainbridge said.

Callihan said nearly every table is occupied on some evenings as students come in for homework help or tutoring. Small rooms for two to four people, she said, would give them a quiet place to work and answer a request she has heard from patrons.

The bank building would give the library a chance to spread those activities across two floors. Callihan envisions a youth floor with a dedicated storytime room and a gaming area for teens. An adult services floor could include a larger computer lab, small meeting rooms and a quiet reading room. A makerspace with 3D printers is a possibility down the road.

The extra room could also benefit readers beyond Mars and Adams. The library serves Middlesex Township and Valencia Borough as well, and Bainbridge said Adams accounts for the largest share of cardholders. Callihan said patrons have increasingly placed holds on materials from other libraries in the Butler County system as space for the local collection has tightened. A larger collection in Mars could also serve readers elsewhere in the county through that shared system.

Planning comes next

Callihan said the library is re-forming its building committee and expects much of 2027 to be devoted to planning and meetings. She described the project as a partnership involving the library board and representatives from Mars Borough and Adams Township, which are set to become Mars Township in 2028.

Mars Mayor Gregg Hartung said the vote gives local leaders a chance to talk about “having a common library with one community.” Before the vote, he said, the discussion had focused on how the library could keep up with demand.

The interviews provided no project cost or opening date. Callihan said the committee will bring in people with the expertise to help work through the building questions while library staff focus on what patrons need from the space.

“We want to make sure that we build a library with intent and purpose that will last us 100 years down the road,” she said.