photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

The Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St., is pictured Friday, May 27, 2022.

The Lawrence Public Library expects to open a new location in southwest Lawrence in the summer of 2027.

The library’s new 6,400-square-foot storefront will be located in the Parkway Plaza Shopping Center, 3514 Clinton Parkway, according to a press release from the library. The space was previously occupied by Beauty Brands, which closed at the end of December 2025.

While the library downtown will remain the “heart of the system,” the release said, the new location will make it easier for more residents to access its resources and programs.

“Having a second location in the southwest part of town brings library services closer to Lawrence residents furthest away from the library,” library director Brad Allen said in the release. “The storefront location can’t replicate all the services we offer downtown, but it can serve as an incubator for us to see what services matter most in the surrounding neighborhoods.”

The library’s 20-year roadmap to grow its spaces notes that Lawrence has grown geographically and that the Lawrence Public Library’s current location at 707 Vermont St. is no longer conveniently accessible to everyone in the community.

The plan identified several areas for potential investment by ZIP code, including 66049 in west Lawrence, 66047 in southwest Lawrence and 66046 in southeast Lawrence. The library’s second location will be aimed at the southwest Lawrence region, which in the plan is described as a high-density area with families and schools that could benefit from a neighborhood gathering space.

The release said renovation work will be funded by a partnership between the library and its Friends & Foundation.