Northwood News ♦ October 2019

Wheaton Library and Recreation Center Now Open

By Frances Spiegel

Wheaton Regional Library reopened as the Wheaton Library and Community Recreation Center on September 8th.  The new 92,000 square foot, $70 million LEED-certified facility replaces the aging Wheaton Regional Library, as well as the recreation center previously located on the other side of the street.

Library

The Library occupies almost 32,000 square feet of the Center’s first floor and features various spaces including eight collaboration rooms, two quiet study rooms (each with 16 study carrels), a large children’s area, a separate teen area, and large room for children’s programming.  The Library reopened with more than 63,000 print volumes and media items, in addition to access to online databases and other resources.  Like the old facility, the new library also offers public computers with internet access.  The Library is currently offering Toddler Time at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesdays.

The Friends of the Library Bookstore has reopened in the new Community Recreation Center, also on the first floor.  The Friends of the Library Bookstore at the old Silver Spring Library on Colesville Road is now closed.

Recreation Center

With respect to fitness offerings, the Community Recreation Center features an exercise room (free weights, cardio equipment, and weight machines) and a large gymnasium with an indoor elevated track.  Use of the fitness center requires a membership, which currently costs $100 per year for adult county residents and includes use of exercise rooms at any County Recreation Center (teens may also join with parental permission).  For community members who only want to use the gymnasium, including the elevated track, an Open Gym Pass Membership is available for $30 per year (free for kids under 18).

The rest of the Community Recreation Center includes several spaces for classes, such as a computer lab, an arts room, a pottery room, and a dance studio.  There is also a small café on the first floor, as well as a recreation room with ping-pong tables and other games.  The upper level offers a community lounge, meeting rooms, and a social hall that will be available for rental.  Expanded programming for classes at the Wheaton Community Recreation Center will begin in January, with class offerings to be published in the Winter County Recreation Guide.

Playgrounds and Parking

The Center features two outdoor play areas: one designed for children aged two to five years, and another for children ages five to twelve.  The playgrounds have an adjacent grassy open play field.  There is outdoor parking near the playgrounds and an additional 176 spaces in the new underground garage located underneath the Library.

Hours of Operation

Wheaton Library is open:

• Mon-Thurs: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Fri-Sat: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Sun: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Wheaton Community Recreation Center is open:

• Mon-Thurs: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Fri-Sat: 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.
• Sun: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

[All photos by Frances Spiegel.]   ■