For more than a century, The New York Public Library has been a fount of knowledge for hundreds of millions of users.
As the Library looks ahead, it is poised to take the next step in a bold plan that will build on this legacy and focus on our neighborhood branches as vibrant, democratic libraries for all.
We envision a system where people of all ages and backgrounds come together in energetic community spaces filled with books, ideas, services, and public programs that anchor our libraries as the cornerstone of civic life in New York City.
We envision libraries that are more than storehouses for books waiting to be checked out. They should be active hubs of knowledge that incubate new ideas while bonding communities and neighborhoods together.
To this end, we are moving forward with an ambitious plan for the future that will transform and upgrade our 91 locations, including the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street. The Library is creating state-of-the-art branches and reenvisioning the public programs and services we offer to patrons from all walks of life — from writers and researchers to immigrants, entrepreneurs, and schoolchildren.
The Teen Center at Hamilton Grange Library. Photo: Beowulf Sheehan.But we can’t do it without you. As we continue with our plans, we want to hear from all New Yorkers and all Library users about what you want your Library for the Future to be. Join the conversation during our public dialogue about the plan and let us know what you would like to see.
Reimagining Neighborhood Libraries
To create the libraries for the future that all New Yorkers need and deserve, NYPL is building several new state-of-the art branches and facilities across the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island while also undertaking major renovations at existing neighborhood libraries.
Since the plan was first announced in 2008, we have already opened a new Grand Central Library, an environmentally friendly Battery Park City Library, and a new Library Services Center to house key departments such as digital imaging and preservation. We also plan to open a new Mariners Harbor Library on Staten Island in spring 2013.
In addition, we have completed a major renovation of the Kingsbridge Library in the Bronx, which opened in June 2011, and a brand-new Hamilton
The Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. Photo: Jori Klein.
Grange Teen Center, which opened at the Hamilton Grange Library in Upper Manhattan in October 2011. In all, we have already invested $300 million for dozens of projects in 50 branches across our system and anticipate spending at least another $125 million in capital projects over the next five years.
Reimagining the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
As part of this ambitious project, NYPL is also working with the award-winning architects
Foster + Partners on a bold reimagining of the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. The 101-year-old flagship library at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street is a world-renowned research center, and now we want to open this New York City icon to far more researchers and other users while dramatically increasing its public areas and creating the largest circulating Library in the country.
Students engaged in an educational program at the Library. Photo: Jori Klein.
Reimagining Library Programs
NYPL’s plan for the future goes beyond reimagining and renovating our facilities. The Library is also working to bring far more high-quality educational programming and services to those users who need it most.
In the coming months and years, NYPL is dedicated to providing immigrants with far more free English classes to fill the growing gap in New York City between what is needed and what is provided. Given the great need for adult literacy, we are also expanding our successful Centers for Reading and Writing, which offer free reading and writing classes for adults.
The Library is also forging new pilot partnerships with New York City public schools to provide students and school libraries with greater access to resources, and planning to dramatically expand homework help and tutoring at neighborhood libraries.
Together, the three pillars of NYPL’s plan for the future — new and updated neighborhood libraries, a reimagined Schwarzman Building, and expanded educational programs — will allow The New York Public Library to create the Library for the Future that New Yorkers and users from around the world so desperately need to navigate the new Knowledge Economy.
We want to hear from YOU! Join the conversation about NYPL’s plan to build the Library for the Future and let us know what is important to you. Don’t forget to check back often for more information and for more ways to contribute input. You can also sign up for NYPL News, the Library's monthly e-newsletter, to get updates on this project and other Library happenings.
A rendering of Mariner's Harbor Library. Photo: Atelier Pagnamenta Torriani Architects Planners LLP.
