April 19, 2005 (EVANSTON, ILLINOIS) – Carlton A. Sears, director of Ohio’s Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, will receive the Urban Libraries Council/Dynix Urban Player Award for 2005, the Urban Libraries Council (ULC) announced today. Sears is being honored for his leadership in revitalizing the Youngstown neighborhood surrounding the library’s main branch. Sears will accept the award, which carries a $1,000 cash prize, at the ULC’s annual membership meeting in June in Chicago.
“Carlton’s part in the development of Smoky Hollow is a wonderful example of the vital role library leaders can play and are playing in civic arenas,” said Martín Gómez, president of the ULC.
Sears was key in creating a nonprofit corporation --Wick Neighbors, Inc. – aimed at redeveloping the historically important, but dying, Smoky Hollow/Wick Avenue District. In less than three years, the corporation has launched a plan that will bring 576 units of new housing and 238,000 square feet of new space for restaurants, cafes, neighborhood services, offices and manufacturing. Additionally, the project will establish more than eight acres of public green space, including gardens, an outdoor performance space and a central park. Sears’ leadership and infectious enthusiasm is credited with sparking both community involvement and ownership in the project.
Director of the Youngstown library since 1997, Sears has become an integral part of the community’s organizations and activities. He holds leadership positions with the community’s Rotary Club, the United Way, the Salvation Army, Mahoning Valley Vision for Education, and a variety of other cultural and educational groups.
The Urban Player Award recognizes individuals who have provided exceptional leadership in both the library and its community. It’s one of a number of ULC programs that focus attention on the library’s role in enriching the urban communities they serve. It was established in memory of Betty Jane Narver, former chair of the ULC’s Executive Board.
For more than 30 years the Urban Libraries Council (ULC) has worked to strengthen public libraries as an essential part of urban life. A membership organization of North America’s premier public library systems and the corporations that serve them, the ULC serves as a forum for sharing best practices resulting from targeted research, education and forecasting. The ULC’s programs are acclaimed for inspiring new organizational models that invigorate urban libraries and enrich the areas surrounding them. The ULC is headquartered in Evanston, Illinois. For more information, visit the group on the Web at www.urbanlibraries.com.
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