We would like to highlight an important open house in Renton on Feb. 15.

That’s when the public will have a second chance to offer its ideas about possible uses for the former city library over the Cedar River. It’s now known as the Liberty Park Library Building.

Everyone knows the history here. The library is now operated by the King County Library System, which along with the city is building a new library next to the downtown transit center.

The current library is owned by the City of Renton and will continue to use it in some fashion. That’s where you come in.

The open house 5 p.m.-7 p.m. at the Renton Community Center, 1715 Maple Valley Highway, is the perfect opportunity to help shape the future of the library.

Three ideas seem to have risen to the top:

• an environmental interpretive center

• an arts and cultural center

• a community gathering space

All those are people-driven uses and without a doubt would help connect the residents of Renton, just like a good book does or a well-told children’s story.

What made the library iconic – its location over the river and a beloved gathering place for Renton – remain, even if its use no long contains shelves of books.