Photo Credit: MCMLSNews
Kevin Brady Library opens to the public on September 2
Montgomery County Memorial Library System (MCMLS) is excited to open the doors of the new library, the Kevin Brady Library on September 2, 2025. MCMLS staff welcome the community to 2250 Buckthorne Place in The Woodlands’ Grogan’s Mill Village Center with a grand opening and ribbon cutting at 1pm.
“We invite our Montgomery County community and neighbors to visit this new modern public library, a welcoming place for all to discover, connect, and innovate,” said MCMLS Library Director Dr. Janna Hoglund.
The Kevin Brady Library opens following the closure of the South Regional Library in late July 2025. The new Library building, which also includes the Community Center, was once used as a grocery store, and the large facility has now been masterfully redesigned and revitalized as a state-of-the-art library to serve The Woodlands and Montgomery County.
Construction began in the summer of 2024 to redevelop the shopping center with the goal of establishing the library as a community anchor. The library project was designed by PGAL and built by O’Donnell Snider Construction LLC. Howard Hughes collaborated with Montgomery County on this project to revitalize Grogan’s Mill Village Center. The design of the library has images and sculptures of the well-loved nature abundant in The Woodlands. The building has ample shared space and also offers definitive spaces for children, teens, and adults in this innovative community library. There will also be a 100-person theater-style classroom along with several study and meeting spaces. In addition, the South Montgomery County Friends of the Library will have space for their bookstore.
The library will include an innovation center with advanced maker space equipment and collaborative spaces, as well as a podcast studio with video and audio production capabilities. Grand opening of the Innovation Center and Podcast Studio is expected to take place at a later date this year. The addition of these innovative services has become possible due to the support and sponsorship of Library Friends Group and Howard Hughes.
The library is named after Kevin Brady, a public servant who served in U.S. Congress for 26 years, the Texas House of Representatives, and who was a leader in The Woodlands/South Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce. There he was involved in bond campaigns, including those for libraries. The renaming of the library recognizes his dedicated service at the local, state and national levels, including his leadership and support to his community in Montgomery County and The Woodlands.
While sharing his thoughts and library memories, Brady said, “I love to read, and growing up I spent a lot of time in our local library. There are just so many adventures to be found in books, and still are. There is no question reading has shaped the trajectory of my life in a meaningful way. I am convinced ‘leaders are readers’, and so in Congress I tried to make time to visit classrooms across my district – reading to children and encouraging a love for reading.
Thanks to our community leaders who had this vision, the new library and community center is simply fantastic. I encourage parents and readers of all ages to visit. You’ll love it.”
In addition to the library, the community center is available for the public to utilize as community meeting space. The community center and library partner together to provide meeting and programming spaces not only to serve the public, but also to allow greater flexibility
in library programming space for a wider audience. Extensive programming, such as Summer Reading programs, will be better accommodated with this collaboration. The library is thankful for this partnership!
The history of the Kevin Brady Library comes full circle as the South Woodlands library opened at Many Pines in The Woodlands in 1978 after its beginnings in the Visitor’s Center in 1976, the early years of The Woodlands started by developer George P. Mitchell. After a fire destroyed the library at Many Pines in 1992, it temporarily reopened in what was first used as Jamail’s grocery store in the Grogan’s Mills Village Center. The library provided services in the Jamail’s grocery store for approximately two years, while a new MCMLS South Regional Library was built and opened at the Lake Robbins Drive. South Library served the Woodlands community at the Lake Robins location for 31 years. Now, Kevin Brady library is returning to the Grogan’s Mill Village center!
The tradition of excellent library services and programs will continue at the K.B. Library with staff prepared to serve more than 100,000 cardholders in the new building. The South Montgomery County Friends of the Library has also supported the library over the years, and will continue to do so in its new location.
The Kevin Brady Library and Community Center is planned to be open on September 2nd with the 1pm ribbon cutting ceremony organized by Montgomery County Precinct 3 and The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce. Kevin Brady will read to the children at a storytime after the ribbon cutting.
Following the ribbon cutting, the regular operating hours of the library will be Monday-Thursday, 9am-8pm, and Friday and Saturday, 9am-5pm.
There will be also a large community celebration on September 20th from 10am to 2pm. The celebration, sponsored by Howard Hughes, will include a bounce house, food trucks, and additional activities.
MCMLS has seven branches throughout the county and also includes a Genealogy and Preservation Center and a Law Library. The system has grown exponentially since 1948. Many literacy-based programs are offered for all ages in the community, with more than 2.5 million items circulated. Currently, 750,000 people in Montgomery County are served, with more than 400,000 cardholders. Visit countylibrary.org for more information.
Source: Montgomery County Memorial Library System
