Inwood Library Temporary Site Chosen

INWOOD, NY — The New York Public Library has chosen a temporary site for its Inwood branch for when the current library is torn down and redeveloped as part of a plan that angered many local residents.

The temporary site will be located in a 1,700-square-foot space in 4857 Broadway, an apartment building located between Academy and West 204th streets. The temporary site is located one block away from the library's current location.

A spokeswoman for the New York Public Library could not confirm when the Inwood branch redevelopment will begin. The library will notify branch patrons when a closing date is set, the spokeswoman said.

The temporary site was chosen due to its proximity to the current branch and because it is ADA acessible, has street access and has required lighting and HVAC capabilities, a library spokeswoman said.

"As we continue to plan this important renovation, I wanted to share that we are also very focused on sustaining core library services in the Inwood community during construction. We are working with partners in the community to find local space for key programs and we will implement Bookmobile service in the neighborhood," Inwood Library Manager Danita Nichols wrote in an email sent to branch patrons.

The city will hand over the Inwood library branch on Broadway between Dyckman and Academy streets to a development team composed of the Community League of the Heights (CLOTH), Ranger Properties, Alembic, and the Children's Village, the city Department of Housing Preservation and Development announced in March 2018. That team's winning bid calls for the construction of a 14-story building with 175 apartments and a new three-level library branch, HPD announced.

All 175 apartments in the new development — named "The Eliza" after Eliza Hamilton — will be offered rents below the market rate, city officials announced.

The units will be eligible for individuals earning between $20,040 and $40,080 per year and families earning between $25,770 and $51,540 per year, city officials said. Twenty percent of the units will be reserved for families of up to three earning less than $26,000 per year and an additional number of apartments will be reserved for formerly homeless residents, city officials said.

The new Inwood library branch will occupy space on three of the new development's floors. The facility will maintain the branch's existing services while adding space for computers, classes and a community room, officials said.

"The new branch—which will be in the same location and is expected to open in 2022—will offer plenty of space for books and periodicals, updated infrastructure for computer-based learning, digital access to a wide range of resources, and flexible spaces that can be used for meetings and presentations," Nichols' letter reads.

A group of Inwood residents called Save Inwood Library have been outspoken critics of the city's plan since it was first announced in January of 2017. The group's members have warned against turning over the library's land to private developers and criticized the city's selection of the Inwood library for redevelopment. The library branch moved to its current location in 1952 and recently won the New York Public Library's "best branch" award.