Multnomah County Library - Midland — Attraction in Portland

Update: November 2024 Midland is finally open after it's remodel!

Yes, it looks brand new and the layout is very different!

Pros: the kids area is very nice, very natural, and has a lot of organic/natural elements. It's close to a small outside play area that then bleeds into the park itself. There are more "spaces" that are designed either for meeting, quiet study, kids, etc... they have made several rooms designated for special events or that can be used for special classes. Some are closed off and some are more open.

For opening day, they had face painting, activities, and music. It was a very fun and festive community event.

They kept the large wall mural from the original building.

There are a lot more comfortable chairs and couches. If you walk straight through the front doors, the very middle isles have holds and they are convenient to find.

There is a printer near the kids area, by the back door that leads to the park. I don't know if it costs to print things, but it's set up in a convenient spot.

There is a sensory room that might be a good quiet room for a child who gets over stimulated or needs a little personal space during busy times.

Cons: the entrance/exit is tricky. There is no one specific station for check out. I'm not crazy about the little self check out stations, they are not logically scattered. And if it's crowded, you end up almost in the way of people trying to get through.

I REALLY don't like the returns that are all one at a time electronic. I usually come back with a huge stack of kids books and it is fun once in a while, but often just becomes a waste of my time to feed the books in individually and deal with the red lights if I go to fast. They should have a system like reverse check out where several books can be returned at a time or just the old fashioned book drop off.

I only saw one security guard. I think for the size and location, this place should probably have at least two.

The parking lot is smaller now They have lots of EV car parking and it's all upfront (which seems like giving preference to people who can afford electric cars and ride to people who have normal gas cars??). It will be interesting to see how quickly the homeless tents return to the street behind the library. I still feel like the surrounding area isn't a safe location in general and on a "'normal" day, I wouldn't want to hang out in the park or parking lot. Which is a shame because I have a kid who would love to run around that park. And they majorly expanded the pavement out front of the library.

Something different: The bathrooms are all basically gender neutral enclosed individual toilet stalls. There is an open area with a sink. It's a little different, but basically they did away with separate bathrooms for men and women. I will say that for the toilets, they have actual doors that close and lock not like stalls that have any gabs or are open. There are two areas with bathrooms one to the right of the main entrance and one to the left of the entrance. I'm not quite sure what to think about them, but I think they are all large enough to accommodate someone who uses a...

This library hasn't been here very long, but it is getting the reputation that it deserves. This library is extremely clean and the staff here are ever so polite with everyone regardless of what your social standings may be. They had made sure that if you were homeless and needed a place to charge your phone; you had it. Sorry folks they have turned off the power to the charging stations outside when they close, since this review was posted Their selections of books are extremely large and deep. There is wheelchair accessible parking, entry and the bathrooms are huge. There is even a bicycle repair stand in order to pump up a flat tire or just work on your bike. This reviewer had investigated the shut down of the stations, per the library admin. they where suppose to be off over night but they was not using the program correctly and they always believed them to be off all this time. However if you are living on the streets they say that they can be ultized during normal hours of operation. I have add a photo of the hours the...

I’ve been coming to this library for years, but lately, it’s been disappointing. The book collection has been cut in half, which already makes it feel like a shell of what it used to be. The library staff are still great—super kind and helpful—but the security here is a different story. Today, while studying (I’m a college student and had been quietly working for over an hour), I took off my flats just to get comfortable. I wasn’t disturbing anyone. Out of nowhere, a security guard came over and loudly barked, “Ma’am, put your shoes back on,” in front of everyone. It was completely unnecessary and humiliating. I understand that there might be rules, but there’s absolutely no reason to approach people with that kind of attitude. A simple, respectful “Hey, can you please put your shoes back on?” would have been more than enough. There’s no excuse for the lack of professionalism and basic manners. Not to mention not an utter...