Increasing rent costs, a need for a bigger space is taking Indy Reads to a new location. Currently, tucked into the back corner of the 900th block of Mass Ave., by August, Indy Reads will be taking over the Fountain Square Library Branch location.
Fountain Square Library announced plans to close in 2015 as a part of its plan to relocate services to the West Perry Branch. Indy Read’s retail store as well as their office space can finally be in one centralized location, said Chrissy Vasquez, Indy Reads’ chief development officer.
Indy Reads is a local nonprofit dedicated to building literacy, English language and job readiness skills for families and adults. To put the importance of Indy Reads into perspective, 1 in 6 adults in Indiana read below the 5th grade level, over 49,000 adults in Marion County cannot read well enough to fill out a job application, understand a newspaper, take in the meaning of road signs or comprehend written instructions. This is what makes Indy Reads’ mission so important.
The move will streamline Indy Reads’ operations, allowing the organization to put moneys saved elsewhere. Right now, because their office space and their retail space occupy two different locations, the organizations has to pay two rents, two phone bills and two internet bills, Vasquez said.
Currently offering over 200 programs, Indy Reads hopes to increase its programming to reach even more people.
“We thank Mass Ave for the memories and helping us build our bookstore when we first launched,” Vasquez said. “We’re very excited to become part of the fabric in Fountain Square.”
