Wheaton Library/Recreation Center opens...then closes!

MoCo officials celebrated Sunday,

but "facilities issue" shutters

brand new building a day later

Update: Montgomery County says the library will now open at 12:30 PM this afternoon.

Montgomery County officials celebrated the ribbon-cutting of the new Wheaton Library and Recreation Center at 11701 Georgia Avenue on Sunday. A day later, the County announced the brand-new building would be closed today, Monday, September 9, 2019, due to "a facilities issue." The library parking lot was filled with contractor vehicles Monday morning. Strangely, the library page itself is not providing the same alert as the Recreation Department Twitter account.

Stay tuned as more information about the cause of the closure becomes available.

This mysterious new development wasn't the only glitch this opening week. Amidst officials patting themselves on the back, actual residents were disappointed to find that promised services were not going to be available this week.

Residents had been told that the popular Senior Fit and Bone Builders programs would return when the library opened. But Senior Fit is not on the program as of the grand opening. In response to resident complaints, Montgomery County Recreation Director Robin Riley said that the issues with Senior Fit returning are "timing and communication" with the service provider, but that the program will return at some point.

Wheaton resident Kimblyn Persaud noted that County officials had also promised a nutrition lunch program, which also failed to materialize upon the facility's opening. Riley said the County hopes to hold "feedback" sessions to determine what programs of this nature to add. Persaud pointed out that the County already knows that a large number of Wheaton residents would qualify and benefit from such a program.