Melrose Public Library Preps For Temporary Move

MELROSE, MA — The Melrose Public Library will close to the public at its historic West Emerson Street location this week to make way for major renovations to the library structure.

While construction crews get set to begin work at the library, library staff will begin the process of transitioning operations to the library’s new temporary home at Melrose’s Beebe School.

For library personnel, the move is a major step in what library Director Linda Gardener recently described as a “once-in-a-lifetime project” for Melrose.

“It is both exciting and a bit surreal to have reached this milestone after all the years of planning,” Gardener told Patch on Wednesday.

The library will close its West Emerson Street location at 5 p.m. on Friday. It will reopen at the Beebe School on or about Sept. 13, according to library personnel.

Renovations back at West Emerson Street will see construction crews complete work the library’s original structure while replacing the building’s two-story 1960s addition with a new three-story addition.

The work will address what city officials have described as critical issues at the now aging library. It will also expand the library’s overall footprint while allowing the library to enhance services, as noted in various city presentations.

Gardener said she is excited about the ability to have a fully accessible front-door entrance at the new library once renovation work wraps.

Staff, she added, are excited about separate program spaces specific to children and adults, as well as a new discovery space “that will allow us to explore creative technologies.”

“The creation of a truly separate space for teens/tweens is eagerly anticipated,” Gardener said.

“The restoration of some of the original features of the Carnegie building will be wonderful to see,” she added.

The original library indeed dates back to 1903 and 1904. Industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie helped fund the building’s initial construction.

The Melrose Public Library expanded with its soon-to-be replaced addition in 1963 before undergoing its most recent renovation in 1990, as noted in a history prepared by the Melrose Mayor’s Office last summer.

Melrose began the process that would lead to its upcoming renovation almost a decade ago in 2013, with the development of a Melrose Public Library Strategic Plan. The city later applied for funding from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, finally winning $8.2 million in grant money last year.

That money now augments a $2 million commitment from the Library Trustees and a $10.8 million bond by the city to fund the roughly $21 million library project.

Gardener said on Wednesday that construction will likely begin in October of this year. The project is then expected to wrap up in February of 2024.

In the meantime, library operations will be located on the first floor of the Beebe School at 263 West Foster Street.

See full plans, an additional project history and a breakdown of library project funding through the city’s library building renovation webpage.