Pictured is famed poet Nikki Giovanni

CLEVELAND, Ohio-World renowned poet and Virginia Tech English Professor Nikki Giovanni will be the keynote speaker on Sat, Nov 12 at noon at the grand opening of the Cleveland Hough Public Library at 6530 Lexington Avenue in the historic Hough Community in Ward 7 on the city's largely Black east side where the library is located. Doors will open at 10 a.m. for festivities and Giovanni will speak at noon about her life’s work and influence on the Black Arts Movement. The grand opening will also include a Djapo Cultural Arts Institute performance, food, and family fun activities, organizers said.

The event is free and open-to-the-public.

Designed by Moody Nolan, the new Hough Campus honors the past with an eye on the future. Moody Nolan’s architects drew inspiration from the mythical Sankofa bird in Africa which looks back while moving forward. This design is in the shape of the building.

The re-imagined library will have an expanded children’s area, a teen nook, more meeting rooms, a welcoming outdoor space, and book lockers for after-hours access to materials.

The Cleveland Public Library system, which has a main library in downtown Cleveland and several branches, including the new Hough Library, is committed to re-building or renovating every neighborhood branch over the next decade. For updates on construction projects, visit courbanize.com/collections/cpl.

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