Q&A with Davis Library spokesperson Judy Panitch on Front Desk Renovations

Davis Library began a renovation on its decades-old main service desk over winter break. Library spokesperson Judy Panitch spoke to staff writer Cailyn Derickson about the library’s history, the construction process and the reasons behind the change.

The Daily Tar Heel: Why did the main desk need a renovation?

Judy Panitch: The library, Davis Library, was designed in the early 1980s, and the things that were common then are really not very suitable to the way that people use the library or the way that the staff are working now. Everything is much more technology-enabled and much more collaborative, so this desk renovation will help us to meet those needs.

DTH: What kinds of renovations are taking place?

JP: The idea is we want to make it easier for people to use Davis Library. We are doing that by creating a single service desk that is at the front of the library and that’s a place where people can ask questions, where they can get help, where they can return materials, all in one place ... As far as the renovation goes, what we have been doing is ... creating a single new desk that’s going to be more visible and more welcoming really and more appropriate for the work that happens here.

DTH: How long is the renovation supposed to take?

JP: We started the work just after y’all went home, so at the beginning of break ... and we are anticipating that this will be done by the end of January.

DTH: Will students still be able to go into Davis during the renovation?

JP: Absolutely, we are entirely open and all of our services are available. All of our materials are available. The only thing is that everybody needs to go in and out of what is normally just the entrance door and we have a temporary service desk.

DTH: Wow, I’m excited to see it.

JP: We’re really excited about it. This is very much needed, and I think the best part is it’s going to make it so much easier for people who are using the library. It’s been confusing to have two different places. People aren’t quite sure what happens at these places. And then there are cases where we send people back from one desk to another and that’s not a good service and it wasn’t very good for our staff either because they weren’t able to collaborate ... so if everybody is in one place it’s going to be a much better experience for people who are using the library and our staff.

DTH: I looked at the picture of the renovation design, and it looks really good.

JP: Yeah, the other thing that it does is it will make our staff there to help more visible and hopefully more approachable because they won’t be behind such a tall desk. It will be at a height where you can have a conversation, where you can look together at documents and computer screens, so it’s going to open up all kinds of possibilities. Also, because of the lower desk height, it’s going to eliminate a barrier for people that are in wheelchairs. It provides us the opportunity to finally do that.

DTH: How did they decide to make this renovation?

JP: I think this goes back to some of the things I was saying before. We looked at the way people use the library and we also looked at the way our staff was performing the work of serving patrons, helping the people who are coming in to use the library and we realized the way the library was built three decades ago was no longer meeting anybody’s needs.

university@dailytarheel.com