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Business and Periodicals

Business, Periodicals and Business Commons

General Reference room entrance

Business and Periodicals room entrance

This large 34,500 square foot space opened in November 2000 as the Business, Science, Technology and Periodicals Room. Just like the 1st floor Schoenleber Reading Room, this is part of the 4th addition added from 1954-1957. Since the 1950s this area of the 2nd floor has rotated many departments such as the Art department and the Central Youth Library. In this space currently you can find the reference materials on business, science and technology; periodicals, magazines, and newspapers; microfilm, and the main public computer area.

Central Library 2nd floor north, 1980-1998

Central Library 2nd floor north, 1980-1998

Today this space holds the main 2nd floor reference desk.  Since 2000, except for a few years during the pandemic when it was called General Reference, this has been the Business, Science, Technology and Periodicals Reference desk.  While the surrounding books and materials focus on those subjects, it also offers assistance with basic computer, printing or scanning assistance. 

General Reference desk

Business and Periodicals desk

Additionally, the Periodicals Service desk in this room is an access point for retrieving reference books stored on one of our 4 basement levels as well as our available tech items such as laptops, hotspots, and Chromebooks.

The newest addition to this space is the Business Commons on the west side of the room. Its grand opening was October 20, 2022, and it offers many flexible areas for study or projects.

Central Library Business Commons


Business Commons

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