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Chattanooga: New library teen center opens today

By: Lauren Gregory
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Eva Johnston

Even Assistant Director Eva Johnston will admit that the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Bicentennial Library hasn’t always been the coolest place for teenagers to hang out.

“What we’ve had is the children’s department, which goes up to fifth grade, and then we had the adult department,” Ms. Johnston said. “So the teenagers were out in limbo — too big for the children’s department, yet didn’t really fit in with the adults.”

But that’s about to change, according to Community Relations Coordinator Andrea Davis, thanks to a $10,000 grant from the state and $75,000 raised during last year’s Club Lib fundraiser.

The money has helped create a 1,400-square-foot center called Teen Stack, complete with the kinds of computers, graphic novels and video games that teenagers want, Ms. Davis said. Two Macintosh computers, two PCs and a 52-inch television screen that can play Blu-ray discs are among the highlights, she said.

The idea is to provide a place where kids can come after school to do homework or simply relax with popular games such as “Guitar Hero,” Ms. Johnston said.

Right now, the hours of the center are restricted to 3 to 5:45 p.m. Monday through Friday and from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, she said, but the library is in the process of recruiting volunteers to keep the center open longer.

Missy Crutchfield, administrator of the Chattanooga Department of Education, Arts and Culture, said the center fits perfectly with her agency’s mission to provide enrichment programming to teens. Ms. Crutchfield, who helps coordinate editorial meetings for Teen Scene magazine at the library, said she hopes to host poetry readings and other such events for teenagers.

“The teens need to have a voice in there, and I think the library has very clearly sent that message, that everything will change,” Ms. Crutchfield said.

Christina Teter, a 17-year-old senior at Red Bank High School, said the center sounded interesting, and she anticipated that many of her classmates will want to check it out.

“I know a lot of kids who don’t have computers. They have to try to go to the computer lab during school hours when it’s open, and that’s hard,” she said. “This (teen center) would be really useful.”

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