Next Chapter for Clinton Hill Library?
Some novel ideas for reworking Clinton Hill’s squat Washington Avenue public library are still alive but probably won’t be making the transition to reality posthaste. As the Times reported about a year ago, the Fifth Avenue Committee proposed building housing or a charter school on top of the branch as well as expanding the library’s…
Some novel ideas for reworking Clinton Hill’s squat Washington Avenue public library are still alive but probably won’t be making the transition to reality posthaste. As the Times reported about a year ago, the Fifth Avenue Committee proposed building housing or a charter school on top of the branch as well as expanding the library’s current facilities. FAC then fine-tuned the plan so it only included a charter school and estimated the 45,000-square-foot addition to the 1974-vintage building would cost $22 million. But Councilwoman Letitia James says she’s hoping to get senior housing built on top of the library, and that plans for redeveloping this library and others (including branches in Sunset Park, Red Hook and Crown Heights) are running into trouble because building covenants on the structures restrict the ways in which they can be tweaked. What do Clinton Hillers think about the possible revamp?
Stranger Than Fiction? Having People Live on Top of Branch Libraries [NY Times] GMAP
It’s an interesting concept and as the above poster commented, the library system is essentially broke and could obviously never afford to do this themselves. i think a mixed use (but not too dense) development with the right community involvement and tasteful contextual design could improve this branch and aid housing for senior citizens. it’s a very quiet street though and i think the design would have to be sensitive to that.
for some reason the pratt architecture building around st james brings to mind fairly acceptable modern design within the historic aesthetic of clinton hill.
Most of the really ugly neighborhood libraries were built in the 1960’s and 70’s when there were square footage limtitations (i.e., no 2nd stories) imposed on new structures by the city. Most of the really beautiful neighborhood libraries (such as the Bedford branch mentioned by 12:26) were built with Carnegie money in the early 1900’s. Today the library is so broke building anything really “pretty” would be immposible.
The Library in Bed-Stuy on Franklin near Fulton was just recently restored. It is a beautiful structure. A building similar to that one would be a perfect fit in Clinton HIll. I don’t know that you could get housing into that type of building but maybe space for community meetings, scout meetings, etc.. would be welcome.
I’m all for improvement but not upwards. It would go against the preservation of that lovely brownstone to the left.
great idea to put senior housing on top of the library! it would be win win for everyone, more housing, better facilities, help for the elderly, this is a no-bainer.
I’m not sure I like the idea of having housing on top of the library, but the facilities themselves are in need of some serious upgrade. It’s great to have a library so close — I often “order” books online to be sent there. I hope the reno brings cleaner, brighter facilities and a bigger selection.
I know the one story library in Crown Heights, on St. Mark’s Ave, replaced one of that street’s Victorian mansions. The building’s architecture is uninspiring, to say the least, and the entire structure fades into the background. I would welcome a better use of space, in the form of a larger, taller building with an expanded library on the first couple of floors, and housing above. That would be great for the community, which is underserved in local library facilities. I would be the first to lobby for an architectural design that was worthy of the block, which has some very nice apartment buildings as well as two very eclectic freestanding houses just across the street. I think the Clinton Hill site, and probably the Sunset Pk one, which I am not familiar with, would probably welcome the same.
Whatever gets designed should be very sensitive to the streetscape. Do we need a so-called “charter” school? The library, of course, is not owned by the city, right? The Brooklyn Public Library like the NYP Library is a non-profit. Who will own the building if it is torn down and built into a school or senior housing? I suppose, not the city…
But…who owns it now? Is it public and simply leased to the library?