Russell Library to Develop Strategic Plan for 2013-2017

Alan Kirk Gray, Chief Administrative Officer for Darien Library and consultant for library planning and service integration, will assist the Russell Library Strategic Planning Committee in creating a plan based “on broad community input and careful priority setting.”   

In Darien, he was responsible for the planning, program, and construction of Darien Library's 55,000-square foot building. It has been cited for its anticipation of the current trends in the innovative use of library facilities. Gray believes a public library should reflect its community’s values, aspirations and expectations, respond to the community’s needs, operate with sustained cost-effectiveness and plan in order to anticipate the future. 

He envisions a library at the center of the community providing assistance in navigating and mediating massive amounts of online information, offering resources for life-long learning, and creating entertaining and educational programs for the public.

In summary, the plan will delineate: “here’s what we are doing now, this is the range of things the whole of the community needs and deserves, now and in the future, and these are the substantive things that are necessary to provide the resources for Russell Library to contribute to the future of this community.”

A major portion of the plan will be based on information gathered from surveys, public forums and focus groups, interviews with community leaders, meetings with the Russell Library staff and members of the Library Board of Trustees. The strategic plan will be completed by the end of February 2013 and then submitted to the Library Board for approval. 

The library will be issuing periodic updates for the community throughout the plan’s development.