REDDING – The Mark Twain Library here has been a mainstay in the community for years, and now with the recent addition of a sizable outdoor patio space, it’s found a way to continually evolve to meet the needs of its patrons.
“Our community is a changing organism, so our library should be as well,” said Director Erin Dummeyer. “During the pandemic, we started hosting all of our programming outside. When folks felt safe enough to congregate inside again, they missed the library having an outside space. In a town that values outdoor space as much as Redding does, it seemed fitting for the library’s space to reflect that community value.”
Called a loggia –a covered space similar to a porch – the new addition pays homage to the library’s most founder, Samuel Clemens (aka Mark Twain) who established the library in 1908.
“A porch is a good thing, but a loggia is worth many dozens of it,” Twain wrote about the loggia in his Redding home.
“Twain loved his loggia where he could enjoy all kinds of weather. I like to think that his love for loggias and pergolas (he had one of those at Stormfield, his mansion in Redding, too) is reflected in this space,” said Dummeyer who noted the loggia aligns with the library’s strategic plan.
That planning calls for creating areas for different noise environments that encourage quiet work or casual meet ups, she said. “We wanted to offer a new gathering space for folks at the Library. You can hear two different waterfalls out there on a quiet morning. We constantly have people out there studying, in Zoom meetings, or just having a snack.”
The loggia was designed by Seventy Acres Landscape Architecture and Design of Sandy Hook, whose owner is a longtime Redding resident and library patron. She collaborated with a Building and Grounds Committee made up of volunteers and three 14-member library boards.
“We’re very fortunate in Redding to live in a beautiful and outdoorsy town,” said board member Eric Rubury, who spearheaded the project as part of that committee. “What better thing to do than to provide an outdoorsy environment for the community.”
The project was funded by a grant from the town of Redding’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) that was matched by the library. In addition, there was funding from private donors including a gift from the Thomas R. and Terry S. Flagg Fund.
Installed in November 2024 and open year-round, the loggia comprises a large, custom radial pergola, a radial granite terrace, and fieldstone seat walls that offer a view of the Aspetuck River beyond. There are various sized council rings of native fieldstone that offer circular gathering spaces and spacious walkway that leads to the front of the property that has a memorial garden, benches, and specimen trees.
“The round drum building to me is really unique and I wanted to embrace that, (and) I wanted it to be comfortable for a couple of people to sit out there or a whole class,” King said.
Since opening, the loggia has become a popular gathering s
