Altadena Library welcomes community back, reopens after Eaton Fire

Somehow, the Altadena Library survived the Eaton Fire and after two months of cleaning shelf by shelf, all 70,000 books, the library opened its doors Tuesday to welcome the community back. 

"It's miraculous that this library and our other branch library in Altadena survived, really in the midst of so much devastation. But to have a piece of what feels like continuity, a piece of familiarity in the midst of all of this is so important,"  Board of Library Trustee Dr. Katie Clark said. 

The buildings around the library burned to the ground from the Jan. 7 wildfire, including the senior center and homes next door. Trustee Clark lost her home too and wanted the community to know that the library has a "living room" for everyone to find a bit of calm.  

"This library is a beautiful example of mid-century modern architecture and when it was designed, this was supposed to be a sort of community living room, and we've always called it that. And so we are just so excited for people to be able to come back, and whether their home is here, or whether their home has been lost, there's a living room that's available for them ... and we hope they find a little bit of calm in the midst of everything," Clark said.    

The vents were cleaned, environmental tests passed and as two miles of fiber optic cable burned up, library staff got creative with connectivity and even gave out 200 hotspots with 14 months of service to people who lost their homes.  

"We're going to be bringing people in for programs, for concerts, for all of the other pieces of life that still go on, even in the midst of a disaster,"  Clark said.

While the water in the area is still not safe, the library has portable hand-washing systems in place, ready for the public.

The library's first big event will be Second Saturday, March 8 at 6:30 p.m. featuring Suavé. Those interested can register through the online calendar.