The $11 million Wesley Chapel Library has already become one of Pasco County's busiest branches, and Tuesday the Seven Oaks community turned out for a ribbon-cutting that doubled as a surprise tribute to the man who pushed the project across the finish line.

Former Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore, a Seven Oaks resident who helped fast-track the library's funding and construction, learned at the ceremony that a family room inside the 13,000-square-foot building now bears his name. The dedication of the Mike and Lauren Moore Family Room caught Moore off guard. His mother, Alice, son Aiden and daughter Aubrey were all present.

"I'm a little choked up," Moore said. "What a great asset for this community."

Since opening Feb. 23, the branch at 27531 Mystic Oak Blvd. has welcomed more than 32,000 visitors, checked out more than 50,000 items and issued more than 3,000 library cards, according to county officials. More than 100 children and family members attend Story Time every week. Staff say people line up outside the doors each morning before the library opens.

The building sits adjacent to Seven Oaks Elementary School, making it a walkable resource for families with school-age children heading into the new school year. Pasco County students return to class Aug. 13.

Pasco County Library Director Sean McGarvey put the branch's popularity in countywide context at the ceremony: the Wesley Chapel branch, one of 10 in the system, has accounted for roughly 5% of the county's 650,000 total library visits logged by mid-2026, despite being open for only five months.

Commissioner Seth Weightman, who succeeded Moore as the District 2 representative covering most of Wesley Chapel, credited Moore's family directly. "The credit for this facility goes truly not just to the board, but to Mike Moore and his family," Weightman said at the event.

Weightman said the county has grown significantly younger as families have moved in, driving demand for amenities like the Wesley Chapel branch. The community's population has grown to an estimated 83,700, up from about 64,900 in the 2020 Census, according to 83 Degrees Media citing the 2024 American Community Survey.

The library is the 10th branch in the Pasco County Library Cooperative. Construction began in April 2024 and finished ahead of schedule. The facility includes children's areas, four reservable study rooms, a community meeting room, rotating exhibits from local artists and a mobile makerspace offering woodworking, pottery, music recording and gardening programs.

County officials are pursuing grant funding to activate a large outdoor area for concerts and author talks, though no timeline has been announced.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony itself had to wrap up promptly: more than a dozen families had arrived for a scheduled screening of "Moana."