This project examines the role of the community in creating, shaping, and sustaining the St. Pete Beach Public Library. Looking at the St. Pete Beach Public Library through this lens will demonstrate why and how this space is a relevant and necessary anchor of the community today, and how it might grow and change in the future.

Brothers Curt and Clyde Wilbur were gifted 350 books from their parents' collection. In 1950, when the brothers moved to the Don Vista neighborhood of what was then known as Long Key (now St. Pete Beach), they decided to donate the books to the local Community Club. The Club spent $25 on supplies and storage space, and a committee comprised of volunteers elected to learn how to organize and catalog a library collection. In 1951, the Club opened a small library within their recreational center, named Long Key Library at the time. Dues for the library were 25 cents per year, and those from out of town paid a $1 deposit, returned to them when they left town. The staff consisted solely of volunteers from the Club, allowing the library to operate 6 days a week.

In just over a decade, the library's collection grew to 10,000 books, making it evident that the Long Key Library needed to expand into a new space. Partnering with the City of St. Petersburg Beach and local residents, the Club donated time to fundraise for the money and resources needed to construct a new building for the library. 

The Club was asked by the city in 1967 to completely vacate the recreational center, which hosted the library. However, the city promised a new center would be constructed at a future date for the recreational center and library. Demolition of the St. Petersburg Community Club and Long Key Library occurred in October 1968. Following the demolition, the new building for the library was constructed at the corner of 73rd Avenue and Blind Pass Road, at a cost of $200,000 and spreading over 8,200 square feet. The library's collection was temporarily moved to a store at 348 Corey Avenue while construction was taking place. A few months before the dedication ceremony for the opening of the library, the city changed the name of the library to the St. Petersburg Beach Public Library. Visitors to the library can still see the stamp of the original name on the pages of some books in the collection. On October 5, 1969, the official dedication ceremony was held for the new building, and the library has remained in the same building since.

The success of the library today is a credit to the community of St. Pete Beach. Back in 1951 when the Club first established the library institution, residents excited for the opening donated an additional 100 books to supplement the Wilburs' bequest. Even before it was built, the new library building had support from the locals. The community came together to financially support the construction of the new building. The Friends of the St. Pete Beach Library group was organized in response to the need for fundraising, and events such as the Flapjack Jamboree, where 800 pancakes were sold, took place. The residents also contributed personal donations, ranging from $5 to $1,000+.

Helen Weber organized the Friends of the St. Pete Beach Library in 1968, though at that time it was called the Friends of the Long Key Library since the name-change had not occurred yet. The Friends originally included women from the Community Club. This community-driven group contributed over 10% of the total construction costs for the new library building.

Today, the Friends still contribute important aspects to continuing the library, and there are over 140 active individuals in this organization as of 2019. Through donations received, membership dues, gift basket silent auctions, and book store sales, they raise over $10,000 annually. This money goes towards purchasing magazine subscriptions, improving library facilities, and the facilitation of educational and cultural programming.

The library's collection is being moved again in 2019. This time, it is to allow for necessary renovations to be completed which will maintain upkeep of the building. This renovation is projected to cost $1.93 million and will be included in the Fiscal 2020 budget. The building's makeover will boast features such as: new roofing; upgraded doors, ceiling tiles, perimeter windows, light fixtures, A/C system, and carpeting; and replaced computer workstations, service desks, children's room furniture, and casual seating.

Despite the renovations taking place in the current building, there has been talk over the last few years of relocating the library altogether.

The St. Pete Beach Public Library recently held their 50th Anniversary Celebration at the library's original historical building. At the celebration, students from the USF Honors College unveiled a new library exhibit showcasing milestones from the past 50 years. The exhibit was created in partnership with the Gulf Beaches Historical Museum, by finding historical records and furnishing artifacts used in the exhibit. Celebrating 50 years for St. Pete Beach Public Library really showed the impact of the community to preserve the library for many years to come!

There is no set plan for the library's future after the current renovations have been completed. Arguments are present to relocate the library as well as to keep it in the same location. No doubt, the prevalence of technology in today's society has had an effect on libraries due to the ease of access to information. However, communities such as those of St. Pete Beach remain passionate about having a library, and spearhead measures to keep it around. Libraries have had to adapt to their changing audience while still maintaining their core values, and as long as St. Pete Beach Library continues to do so, it should remain important in the community for years to come.