The New York Public Library's Bronx Library Center Recognized for Sustainable Design Features by the U.S. Green Building Council

Center is New York City's First LEED ®-Certified Municipal Building

Building Marks One-Year Anniversary of Serving Bronx Community

New York, NY January 11, 2007 - In an event today at The New York Public Library's Bronx Library Center, the Library's President Paul LeClerc accepted the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver Certification plaque from S. Richard Fedrizzi, the Council's President, CEO & Founding Chairman. From its expansive glass curtain wall to its use of recycled materials and efficient building systems, The Bronx Library Center encapsulates a wide range of innovative features. Designed by Dattner Architects, the Center is New York City's first municipal building to qualify for LEED certification, the nationally accepted benchmark for design, construction, and operation of high-performance green buildings. The event also marks the first anniversary of the Bronx Library Center, which opened on January 17, 2006.

"In conceiving this major new Library for the Bronx, we were determined to make a contribution to the environment," said Dr. LeClerc. "Many of the features that accomplish this goal, such as the striking glass façade and extensive use of natural light, have helped make the Library a welcoming and comfortable place for the more than 700,000 visitors in its first year. We are thrilled to be recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council for creating a library that serves its environment with efficiency and sensitivity."

"In the year since opening The Bronx Library Center has been a vital and important resource for the community," said Susan Kent, Director and Chief Executive of the Branch Libraries. "While statistics show that it has been heavily used, its impact is most strongly demonstrated in the personal stories of the job-seekers who credit the Library with helping them find employment, the teens who discover a new interest or favorite author, the adults learning to read in our literacy program, and the hundreds of people who attend programs, use the Internet, or check out books on a daily basis."

The award plaque was received less than two weeks after New York City's Local Law 86, also known as the Green City Building Act, went into effect on January 1. Local Law 86 requires that New York City's new construction projects abide by rigorous standards of sustainability. As the City's first publicly-funded green building and the Library's first green facility, the $50 million Bronx Library Center is a leading example of a state-of-the art, environmentally responsible building.

The Bronx Library Center's Environmental Design Features
The U.S. Green Building Council's LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver Certification was based on the Center's green features involving materials' selection; air quality and daylight; energy and water; and site use. The building's foundation and structural steel, for example, largely consist of recycled content. Most of the building's millwork, including information desks, door, and paneling is chain-of-custody certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. Millwork fabrication also replaced potentially harmful products with new alternatives. The high-performance glass curtain wall with insulated frames lowers the building's energy costs by reducing the transfer of heat at windows with insulated frames. Separately controlled heating and cooling zones for collection and office areas help conserve energy by directing air to where it is needed. For a complete listing of the Center's environmental design features, refer to the Library's Keeping it Green: The Bronx Library Center publication.

"Students, parents, and everyone who uses the Bronx Public Library have a beautiful, comfortable new place to read and learn," said Rick Fedrizzi, USGBC President, CEO & Founding Chair. "LEED certification makes buildings healthier for people and healthier for the environment. As the first LEED certified municipal building in New York City, the Bronx Library is sending a strong message that it cares about the community and that it cares about the future of New York."

Bronx Library Center
Located at 310 East Kingsbridge Road in the heart of the borough's busy Fordham Road commercial district, the 78,000-square-foot Bronx Library Center replaced the nearby Fordham Library Center when it opened. In its first year, the Center has become a heavily used community resource, more than doubling the number of patrons served by the former facility. With over 127 public access computers, 30 laptops available for use and carrying throughout the building, and over 200,000 books, periodicals, videos, audiotapes, CD-ROMs, and DVDs, the Center serves as an anchor for the borough's 35 branch libraries. Other services and programs available include a Center for Reading and Writing; a Latino and Puerto Rican Cultural Center; materials available in a wide variety of languages (Spanish, Chinese, Russian, French, Bengali, Korean, and Vietnamese); and individual counseling for higher education and career opportunities, including help in cover letter/resumé writing, and with college applications.

About USGBC & LEED
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is the nation's leading coalition of corporations, builders, universities, federal and local agencies, and nonprofit organizations working together to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. The USGBC's LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System is a voluntary third-party rating system where building projects earn credits for satisfying specified green building criteria. Projects are evaluated within five environmental categories: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, and Indoor Environmental Quality. Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum levels of green building certification are awarded based on the total credits earned. The LEED standard has been adopted nationwide by Federal agencies, state and local governments, and interested private companies as the industry standard of measurement for green building. For more information visit: www.usgbc.org.

Bronx Library Center Hours
The Bronx Library Center is open Monday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday from noon to 6 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

About The New York Public Library
The New York Public Library was created in 1895 with the consolidation of the private libraries of John Jacob Astor and James Lenox with the Samuel Jones Tilden Trust. The Library provides free and open access to its physical and electronic collections and information, as well as to its services. It comprises four research centers - The Humanities and Social Sciences Library; The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts; the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture; and the Science, Industry and Business Library - and 86 Branch Libraries in Manhattan, Staten Island, and the Bronx. Research and circulating collections combined total more than 50 million items. In addition, each year the Library presents thousands of exhibitions and public programs, which include classes in technology, literacy, and English as a second language. The New York Public Library serves over 15 million patrons who come through its doors annually and another 21 million users internationally, who access collections and services through its website, www.nypl.org.

This building was generously funded by The State of New York: George E. Pataki, former Governor; Charles A. Gargano, former Chairman, Empire State Development Corporation; the New York State Assembly and Assemblyman José Rivera; and The City of New York: Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor; Christine C. Quinn, City Council Speaker; Adolfo Carrión, Jr., Bronx Borough President; the Bronx City Council Delegation and City Council Majority Leader Joel Rivera.

A major grant from Roger and Susan Hertog provided lead private support for the Bronx Library Center. Support for cultural programming was provided by a generous grant from Bank of America, with additional funding from the New York Community Trust.

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Contact :             Gayle Snible      212.592.7700          |             gsnible@nypl.org