Voting is now closed, thank you for your participation!
Deadline: Friday, April 1, 2022
We received many great suggestions from the community and have narrowed down the names to four final recommendations. We need your help to find the final name to represent your neighborhood library!
- Bob Ragland Branch Library
- Lorraine Granado Branch Library
- South Platte Branch Library
- ArtPark Branch Library
Learn more about the final four name nominations, here.
Don’t have access to a computer? Request a paper ballot at the branch (1900 35th Street, Suite A, 80216) or at these nearby locations:
- Valdez-Perry Branch Library | 4690 Vine St. 80216
- Ford-Warren Branch Library | 2825 High St. 80205
- Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library | 2401 Welton St. 80205
- Pauline Robinson Branch Library | 5575 E. 33rd Ave. 80207
Background
The yet to be named branch is part of a new Community Hub housed within a recently renovated building in one of Denver's newest parks, located at 35th & Arkins Ct. The branch will serve the neighborhoods of Five Points, Cole, Globeville, and Elyria-Swansea alongside our existing Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library and Valdez-Perry Branch Library.
The Community Hub is a unique partnership between Denver Public Library, RiNo Art District, the City of Denver, RedLine Contemporary Art Center and Focus Points Family Resource Center. The shared space will provide collaborative programming and services celebrating art, innovation, education and small business. This hub will also have a public plaza off the Platte River Bike Path and green space that will be an active hub for the community.
No other public library in the country has engaged in an arts-focused community partnership like this. The library will have 7,000 square feet of space and will provide unique collection access, technology and wifi access, community meeting rooms, outreach and programming.
Naming Community Committee
As part of the branch naming process, a Naming Community Committee was formed in partnership with Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca consisting of a diverse group of people from the community. The Naming Community Committee is guiding this process and created the criteria for a new name of the branch. It is the hope of Councilwoman CdeBaca and the naming committee that this naming process identifies a name that can also be proposed for the unnamed park that houses the library.
This is the first step was engaging the general public. Recommended names were submitted and researched and vetted. The Naming Community Committee then finalized the top names that are currently going to a public vote. The final branch name will be presented to the Library Commission for approval and a celebration will be planned.
Criteria
Denver Public Library
Your name recommendation should consider the library’s vision, mission and values.
Vision: A strong community where everyone thrives.
Mission: Together, we create welcoming spaces where all are free to explore and connect.
Values:
- Welcoming Everyone
- Fostering Curiosity
- Strengthening Connection
- Challenging Inequity
- Honoring Public Trust
Naming Branch After a Person:
If you are recommending the branch be named after a person, please consider the following:
- Person must be deceased.
- Significant civic service and contribution to the local neighborhood/area surrounding the new branch or Denver proper.
- Neighborhoods include 5 Points, Globeville, Elyria, Swansea, Cole, Ballpark, Curtis Park and Whittier
- Historical figures.
- Cultural, ethnic and diverse background.
A “Meaningful” Name (Non-Person)
If you are recommending any type of lyrical name for the branch, please consider the following:
- Names that celebrate connection.
- Example: This area of the city was used as a meeting place by Native tribes to gather.
- Example: Confluence of modes of transportation, how people move, the movement of people were all relevant to this part of the city.
- Names that celebrate Learning
- Libraries are places to learn, explore, create.
- Natural or geographical features, such as plants or wildlife along the river.
- Example: Birds that live or lived in this area (i.e. kill deer, eagles, redtail hawks, canadian geese, downy woodpeckers, red winged black birds, etc).
Other Considerations
- Honoring the past, present and future.
- Acknowledge and celebrate communities that called this area home in the past (i.e. Native, Black, Hispanic, Japanese American).
- If the new branch name is to also be proposed for the park, the name should follow the general principles in the Denver Parks & Recreation naming policy.