According to a news release from Cobb County Public Library Communications Coordinator Thomas Brooks, the Lewis A. Ray Library will close temporarily starting Monday, August 7, for a renovation project. The closure is expected to last for three months, with plans to reopen in November. 

The library will undergo a transformation by the Cobb County Property Management Department to become a dedicated Family Services branch, with an emphasis on children’s collections, resources, and programming, according to officials. The renovation project will include the addition of enclosed children’s program and study rooms, reconfiguration of staff and service desk spaces, as well as updates to the furniture.

Serving as a small library for families in the Oakdale community and surrounding neighborhoods, townhomes, and apartments, the current Lewis A. Ray facility was first opened 56 years ago. Its address is 4500 Oakdale, Smyrna 30080, situated between South Cobb Drive and Atlanta Road, near Interstate 285 and Cumberland Parkway.

The location is in the Oakdale neighborhood, adjacent to Smyrna and near the eastern portion of Mableton.

During the closure, Lewis A. Ray Library patrons who have placed holds for library items will be able to pick up their materials at the Vinings Library, located at 4290 Paces Ferry Rd., Atlanta 30339. Additionally, South Cobb Regional Library in Mableton is another nearby library option. Library staff members from Lewis A. Ray will be temporarily relocated to various libraries within the Cobb library system.

About the Cobb County Public Library

According to the Cobb County Public Library website:

Cobb County Public Library is a 15-branch system headquartered in Marietta, Georgia, where its staff members serve a diverse population of over 750,000 people. Cobb is one of Georgia’s fastest-growing counties, and Cobb County Public Library is dedicated to being a resource center in the community by providing equal access to information, materials, and services.

History of Cobb’s library system

The first public library in Cobb County was opened in the home of Sarah Freeman Clarke in Marietta. The first standalone library building, opened on Church Street in 1893 and was named for Clarke.

Libraries were opened in Acworth and Austell in subsequent years, and in 1959, the city of Marietta and several other Cobb County libraries combined to form a countywide system that began the Cobb County Public Library as we know it today.

You can read more about the history of the Cobb County Public Library by following this link.