B-311_192+EAST+BROADWAY

BLOCK 311



COST OF CONSTRUCTION: $100,000
 * BLOCK || 311 ||
 * LOT || 31 ||
 * NB || 126-08, RENOVATION 1956, RESTORATION 2004 ||
 * USE || INSTITUTIONAL: SEWARD PARK PUBLIC LIBRARY, OPENED 1909 ||
 * ORIGINAL USE || SEWARD PUBLIC LIBRARY ||
 * CURRENT USE || SEWARD PUBLIC LIBRARY ||
 * NUMBER OF STORIES || 4 ||
 * FAÇADE MATERIALS || BRICK, LIMESTONE ||
 * FOUNDATION MATERIAL || CONCRETE ||
 * STYLE || RENAISSANCE REVIVAL ||
 * FIREPROOF || YES ||
 * NUMBER OF UNITS || 1 ||
 * ELEVATOR || YES ||
 * NUMBER OF ELEVATORS || 1 ||
 * DATE OF INSTALLATION || 2004 ||
 * PARKING GARAGE || NO ||
 * DESCRIPTION || x ||
 * DATE OF INSTALLATION || x ||
 * NUMBER OF PARKING SPACES || x ||
 * LOT SIZE || 52.35' x 116.25' ||
 * BUILDING SIZE || 18,028 sq. ft. ||
 * BUILDING HEIGHT || ? ||
 * RELATIONSHIP TO LOT LINE || LOT IS SURROUNDED BY SEWARD PARK ||
 * ARCHITECT NAME + ADDRESS || BABB, COOK & WELCH, 3 WEST 29TH STREET ||
 * BUILDER NAME + ADDRESS || ? ||
 * OWNER/DEVELOPER NAME + ADDRESS || NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY, 40 LAFAYETTE PLACE ||

A four-story red brick Renaissance Revival building with high ceilings and arched windows, the branch is located at the eastern edge of the park for which it is named. The branch's origins can be traced to 1886, when the Aguilar Free Library Society opened several libraries, including what would become the Seward Park Branch. The library, designed by the firm of Babb, Cook & Welch, opened its doors on November 11, 1909. The building houses adult, reference, and young adult collections on the third floor; a children’s room on the second floor; adult, media, and world language collections on the first floor; and a literacy center on the lower level. In its first renovation since 1953, the branch reopened in 2004 with a restored exterior and interior, central air-conditioning, new technology infrastructure and computers, and ramps and an elevator that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, among myriad improvements. In its early days, the Seward Park Branch served an immigrant Jewish population. Today, the community is home to a mixture of Jews, Hispanics, African Americans, and an ever-increasing Asian population. [|www.nypl.org/locations/tid/67/about]

[|cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/18/a-librarys-century-of-hungering-imagination/]

AIA GUIDE (P. 91): "A palazzo for book users (on the exterior at least). When built, the area was bulging with people and land was scarce, so the roof was planned as an outdoor reading area. Note the balusters and verdigris beginnings on the trellis".

HISTORIC PHOTOS: