Revised date for reopening of Athlone Library

The Aidan Heavey Library in Athlone will now reopen to the public on Thursday, February 19, a month later than initially planned.

In a statement issued to the Westmeath Independent, County Librarian Paula-Leavy McCarthy confirmed that the Aidan Heavey Library will reopen to public on Thursday, February 19.

The County Librarian added that "staff were really looking forward to welcoming community members back into the library as they return with a full range of services and events".

Ms Leavy-McCarthy also confirmed that the My Open Library service was "provisionally anticipated to commence in mid-March".

Athlone Library closed to the public on October 24 and was initially expected to reopen in mid-January.

The closure was to allow for improvement works in order to facilitate public access outside of normal hours through the 'My Open Library' initiative.

A statement issue on behalf of the library at the time of the closure said it was "excited" about the upcoming works which would lead to "a new chapter in the library".

The library's statement encouraged members to "continue to take advantage of our wide range of online services" during the closure period.