As the 8th largest City in the U.S. the San Diego Public Library (SDPL) serves a diverse population of over 1.3 million residents. The Library System consists of the Central Library and 35 branch libraries. In Fiscal Year 2013, SDPL had 5.8 million visitors and almost 8.6 million virtual visits through the Library website. More than three decades ago, San Diego's leaders and citizens recognized the need for a new Central Library to meet the needs of a growing metropolitan city. The existing facility built in 1954 was designed to serve a population of only 466,000 people and was woefully out of date. In an historic decision on June 28, 2010, the San Diego City Council approved construction of the new Central Library. The goal was to create a state-of-the art library that would position the library system to respond to future needs of the community. This unique project also included a charter high school in the building, making it the largest municipal library in the U.S. to have an onsite school.

SDPL launched a communication and rebranding effort to:

1. raise awareness about the importance of the new Central Library project to the entire library system and community as a whole,
2. create excitement about the project’s progress, and
3. set the direction for a new era for the Library.

In 2012, while the new Central Library was under construction, SDPL began the process of rebranding the Library to better reflect the direction that it was headed to meet the future needs of the community. At a Staff Development Day there were two exercises to help the staff redefine SDPL as a culture and how we wanted to present ourselves to the community. Staff also voted on five potential new logo designs that had been created for the Library by a San Diego State University (SDSU) graphic design class. From that process emerged a clear logo winner, a tagline "Discover Your Next Chapter" and a "Who We Are" statement. The new brand was launched in April 2013 to coincide with National Library Week. The theme used for the launch was: “We’ve Turned the Page…A New Look, a New Library, a New Era.” While rebranding has given SDPL a more professional, identifiable and updated look, the most important aspect of the change is how it has altered the way the staff members think about ourselves and how we portray ourselves to the public. It has instilled a renewed pride about the programs and services we provide. As Library Director Deborah Barrow said at the time of the launch, "It represents a rebirth for the entire San Diego Public Library system. SDPL’s new logo and rebranding effort reflects this new mindset. It has been exciting to witness the level of energy from staff regarding this creative process.” The new logo symbolizes the closing of one chapter in our history and the opening of a new one focused on the future and all that it has to offer.

All of the effort that went into the communication and rebranding campaign paid big dividends. Awareness about SDPL has never been higher. In the two months leading up to the Library’s opening on September 30, 2013, 194 broadcast stories and 233 print stories ran in San Diego media. Both the local daily paper (UT-San Diego) and a business publication (The Daily Transcript) devoted special sections to the Library’s opening. Headlines of praise included “New library a ‘dream come true,’” “San Diego’s thoroughly modern, gleaming new Central Library,” “New San Diego library: a living monument to literacy” and “Behind Grand New Library, a Distinct Vision.” The public has also responded enthusiastically to SDPL's vision as evident by the dramatic increased in use of the new Central Library over the previous year. In the first five months of operation circulation was up by 88.3%. Visits were up over 119.10%. Attendance at programs has skyrocketed with adult attendance up by 324.96% and juvenile attendance up by 481.73%. This excitement and buzz has positively affected the whole Library system as the focus now turns to funding branch libraries. The SDPL Story is one of reinventing ourselves, while building on and honoring the vital role the past has played to get us to this point. It is a story that is now being rewritten jointly by the staff and the community we serve. We are collectively setting the direction that constitutes a new era and jointly discovering San Diego's next chapter.