HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Some public libraries in the Tampa Bay area which closed at the start of the pandemic are partially reopening on Monday, November 16.
Hillsborough County officials closed all its public libraries in late March over COVID-19 concerns. Staff continued to offer services from the buildings, but public access to its collections and computers has been restricted.
Select areas within the following nine libraries will reopen at 25% capacity on Monday:
- Bloomingdale Regional Public Library, 1906 Bloomingdale Ave., Valrico
- C. Blythe Andrews, Jr. Public Library, 2607 E. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Tampa
- Jan Kaminis Platt Regional Library, 3910 S. Manhattan Ave., Tampa
- Jimmie B. Keel Regional Library, 2902 W. Bearss Ave., Tampa
- Maureen B. Gauzza Public Library, 11211 Countryway Blvd., Tampa
- North Tampa Branch Library, 8916 North Blvd., Tampa
- New Tampa Regional Library, 10001 Cross Creek Blvd., Tampa
- SouthShore Regional Library, 15816 Beth Shields Way, Ruskin
- Town ‘N Country Regional Public Library, 7606 Paula Drive, Ste. 120, Tampa
Library officials made the decision to begin the phased reopening after consultation with health officials, emergency managers, library staff and Hillsborough County officials.
The nine libraries will be open to the public Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Visits will be limited to one hour and children under the age of 17 must be accompanied by a parent. Face coverings and social distancing are required. Temperature checks will be conducted at the door.
Study rooms, meeting rooms, makerspace, and recording studios will not be available for use.
All library programs, including story times, will continue to be held virtually.
For more information about the library reopen plans, visit HCPLC.org.