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Mobile library visits Sarasota County neighborhoods

By Bryan Gay
Published  May 22, 2025 2:51pm EDT
What's Right with Tampa Bay
FOX 13 News
Pop-up library on the move in Sarasota County

Pop-up library on the move in Sarasota County

Mark Wilson reports.

The Brief

    • A mobile library is making it easier for residents in Sarasota County to get their hands on books to read.
    • The Pop-Up Library brings books, technology and services right to your neighborhood.
    • In its first year, the mobile library has made 150 stops.

SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. - A new chapter is rolling into Sarasota County, literally.

The backstory:

It's called the Pop-Up Library. It brings books, technology, and services right to your neighborhood. 

A library-on-wheels is "What's Right With Tampa Bay." 

It’s not your typical library building, but it’s packed with everything you’d expect and more.  

Dig deeper:

"We bring books and audio books, and we check out and make library cards," said Katie Dow, Sarasota County Libraries and Historical Resources. 

"We take books back, and we work with the patrons who need tech help or things like that." 

Sarasota County’s new pop-up library is a fully staffed vehicle designed to bring literacy, learning, and technology straight to the community. 

"Their people may be geographically or socially, economically or physically unable to come to one of our branches," said Dow. 

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"We bring all the benefits of a library branch to them, to their community.  

"I luck out, and I got two of them, and they are going to bring some next time they come," said Bernie Spitalnick, a library visitor. 

"We know that the library has books, but it has more than books," said Charlotte Thompson, a retired librarian. 

Whether you need a new library card, want to return a book, or just hop on some free Wi-Fi, the popup library has you covered.  

"I know that they have a lot of good things available, specially interested in the e-readers things I can get on my tablet," Suellen Granberry-Hager, a library visitor said. 

Staff are also on hand to offer reading recommendations and tech help.

"It's been going really great. In our first year, we did 150 stops," said Dow. 

What's next:

The pop-up library will frequently travel throughout Sarasota County, offering a fresh approach to keeping residents engaged in reading, learning, and staying connected. 

The mobile vehicle was made possible thanks to the Library Foundation for Sarasota County and the William G. and Marie Selby Foundation. 

The Source: FOX 13's Bryan Gray gathered the information for this story.

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