Kankakee Public Library Unveils New Reading Garden

An underused strip of grass on the western side of the Kankakee Public Library has been reborn as a free public reading garden, complete with a custom mural, a grass archway and a lighted sign marking the entrance. The library will formally unveil the space Thursday, September 10, at 7 p.m. with a ribbon-cutting celebration open to all ages. The transformation turned what had been an overlooked outdoor space into a green gathering spot for the community, according to Shaw Local, whose reporting on the project forms the backbone of this account. The renovation included fresh landscaping, the grass archway at the garden's entrance and the lighted sign, all designed to give library patrons a place to read, gather or simply sit outside downtown. At the center of the new garden is a custom mural created by library artists that celebrates native plants and the library's core values, weaving in references to reading, art and music. Young library patrons submitted design ideas that helped shape the final artwork, and several names were specifically worked into the finished mural design: Esther Lam, Brittney Lane and Mary Bass, with Corine Rose also assisting on the mural project, per the same account. The mural incorporates native Kankakee River Valley species, grounding the artwork in the region's own natural heritage. That heritage includes rarities like the Kankakee Mallow, a wildflower that, according to the Field Museum, grows wild nowhere else in the world except a single island along the Kankakee River. Folding that kind of endemic flora into a downtown mural links the library's beautification project to a broader, ongoing effort by conservationists and volunteers to preserve native plants throughout Kankakee County. The Illinois Arts Council supported the project, the report notes, a detail consistent with the state agency's Creative Projects Grant program, which allows eligible municipal entities and public institutions like libraries to receive up to $12,000 for public arts initiatives that culminate in a public presentation, per the Illinois Arts Council. The exact amount awarded to the Kankakee library has not been disclosed. Clara Hall, who heads the city's Environmental Services Utility and Department of Public Works, led the beautification project alongside city staff and Kankakee High School student workers who helped bring the garden to life. Hall has worked for the city department for over two decades, according to the City of Kankakee. The pairing of municipal infrastructure crews with teenage student labor reflects a broader pattern in which the city's Economic and Community Development Agency coordinates with local organizations to revitalize downtown corridors and public infrastructure. Library Director Allison Beasley oversees the facility where the new garden now sits, having taken the helm of the Kankakee Public Library in December 2022 after serving as assistant director and starting her career there as a part-time employee back in 1996. The library itself moved to its current home at 201 East Merchant Street in downtown Kankakee in January 2004, occupying space in the Executive Center that once housed the historic Gelino department store, according to the Kankakee Podcast. Before that move, the library had operated on Indiana Avenue for more than seven decades. The new mural adds to a long tradition of public art at the library's entrance, most famously the pair of cast-iron lions named Seymour and Readmore. Those sculptures originated at a Chicago department store in the 1880s and were purchased by the library for just $25 in 1929, per the Kankakee Podcast's historical account, and they have since been restored and placed at the current facility's entrance. Today the library holds far more than a striking facade. As of early 2025, its physical and digital collection included more than 75,500 print books, 113,000 e-books and 38,500 audiobooks, illustrating an institution whose reach extends well beyond its building. The library also functions as a neighborhood civic center, hosting regular monthly programs such as free legal advice clinics with Prairie State Legal Services and caregiver support workshops with Catholic Charities, according to the Catholic Charities program listing. Thursday's ribbon-cutting celebration is free and open to all ages, and will feature live entertainment alongside food vendors Mac's BBQ and H2O Limonata. The event marks the public debut of the redesigned reading garden after the collaborative push by library artists, city public works staff, student workers and state arts funding to remake the once-forgotten side lot. The project arrives in a city where, according to U.S. Census Bureau data, roughly 33,000 to 36,000 residents live with a poverty rate exceeding 20% and about 46% renter-occupied housing — conditions that underscore the value of free, accessible green space in the city core for residents without private yards. Those wanting more information about Thursday's celebration can contact the Kankakee Public Library at 815-939-4564.