Visitors to the Dartmouth Public Library North Branch can check out the scenery while checking out a book.

The town’s newest library was built to showcase the natural setting around the building, branch manager Sharani Robins said.

Construction of the site was completed in 2019, with the library opening to the public in late January 2020. 

Then, just as quickly, it closed. Weeks later, the library, like much of the world, was shut down to the public due to the pandemic. The community had little chance to visit and faced significant restrictions when they did.

With Covid regulations lifted, the library is now fully open to the public with no restrictions, Robins said. People can visit for as long as they want, she said, and all furniture is now available for use. 

That includes new outdoor rocking chairs that overlook the woods behind the building.

“It’s a peaceful, serene spot to feel the breeze and hear the birds,’’ she said, smiling and nodding at the trees as avian songs filled the air. 

But the quiet setting does not preclude productivity, she said. The outdoor area has several outlets where devices can be plugged in. 

“You can work if you want to,’’ she said. 

The library was built in an area of “existing open meadow landscaping, facing the road and large tract of undisturbed woodland,’’ according to information provided by Oudens Ello Architecture, the firm that designed the site under the oversight of the Library Building Committee.

“The whole design of the place is from that perspective,’’ Robins said. 

The green project includes rain gardens, permeable paving, and a solar power system that provides nearly 40 percent of the building’s electrical use, according to materials from Oudens Ello Architecture

As part of the green theme to the design, the front of the building does not resemble the traditional library exterior. Instead, visitors to the site are greeted by a meadow, which this time of year features large numbers of black-eyed Susans. 

This meadow is said to attract bees and butterflies, Robins added. 

The meadow was “purposely planted,’’ she said, both to reflect the natural setting and to save money on mowing costs. 

She said she is aware that some community members have expressed mixed feelings about the look of the front entrance. 

This meadow took time to fill in, Robins said, and “didn’t look as good’’ earlier in the year.

“Now that the flowers are blooming, we are getting more compliments,’’ she said. 

She said she hopes people will visit and enjoy both the library and the outdoor setting.

“We’re just really excited to let people know we’re open,’’ Robins said. “We have a beautiful new library with amazing views of the outdoors.’’

She encouraged visitors to relax with a magazine, take advantage of the quiet study areas and use the computers.

The climate-controlled library provides an oasis to relax and chill, literally, during the hot weather, Robins said.

“You don’t have to have a library card’’ to enjoy the building, she said. “I hope more and more people know it’s here.’’