Citizens Defending Libraries Plans Packed Slate Of Public Rallies April 13-20th

By on April 12, 2013 1:17 pm in Government, Landmark Preservation

Citizens Defending Libraries, the Brooklyn Heights-based organization that is petitioning the city to stop selling public library real estate to private developers, has a full slate of rallies in the coming week. Neighbors forming the group have collected 8893 virtual petition signatures, demanding that the Cadman Plaza Library and its building, in place since 1962, should should not be demolished or sold.

CDL will sponsor “Library Protection Week” Saturday April 13 through Saturday the 20th, culminating in a press conference on the steps of Manhattan’s City Hall, where Comptroller John Liu and other elected officials are scheduled to speak.

 

Coming up:
Saturday, April 13: a noon rally in front of the Brooklyn Heights Public Library at 280 Cadman Plaza West. New York State Assemblywoman Joan Millman and City Councilman Stephen Levin will speak.
Saturday, April 13: From 2-3 p.m., the group will move to the Pacific Street Library at 25 Fourth Avenue @ Pacific Street in Park Slope/Boerum Hill.

Monday, April 15: From noon to 1 p.m, a Sit Out and rally in front of the 42nd Street Central Reference Library and Mid-Manhattan Branch.

Wednesday, April 17: From noon to 1 p.m., a rally for Donnell Library, 20 West 53rd Street between 5th & 6th Avenues, (meet on 40 West 53rd). This served as home of Winnie The Pooh, rare music CDs and documentaries, and is now closed and has been scheduled to be sold to a developer since 2008, with no promised replacement.

Thursday, April 18: From noon to 1 p.m., on the steps of City Hall, City Hall Park, Broadway & Chambers Streets in Manhattan, City Comptroller John Liu will discuss the administration’s funding cuts and sell-off of the public library system at a press conference.

For information on Citizens Defending Libraries, phone 718-797-5207, see its blog, @DefendLibraries on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and email backpack362@aol.com.

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  • HenryLoL

    Tear down that nightmare — it’s the place where happiness goes to die! Everyone I know in The Heights cant wait for the new smaller library to open.

  • David on Middagh

    Actually, HenryLoL, our library is where *I* go when my computer goes and dies. Or, as once happened, a rainstorm took out my Internet connection for two weeks. Or I need to print something and my printer’s ink has run out.

    Not to mention the books…

  • MonroeOrange

    Henry, you must know very few people in the heights then.

  • BKPlace

    I’m all for the fight to save LICH, but I disagree with these protests. The community needs a new library and a developer can provide one as well as ongoing funding to keep it up to date. The libraries are not being demolished, they are being replaced with additional housing on top (which the community is also short of). I would much rather this option than my tax dollars being used to replace it. What am I missing?

  • HenryLoL

    There is going to be a new — BETTER — library in the new building.

  • HenryLoL

    Not true. Not sure of what your hidden agenda is, but there is no reason ANYONE would want to keep this dump open.

  • Wiley E.

    More additional housing is needed on top??? The schools are overcrowded, the sidewalks are crowded, no new police personnel, no new fire personnel, no room for more people.

    Overcrowding ruins the nature of the neighborhood.
    Stop feeding the billionaire developers, save the neighborhood.

    The library has been mismanaged. The solution is new government leadership away from developers.

  • Andrew Porter

    “The sun will come out tomorrow… bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow, there’ll be sun….”

  • stuart

    the plan is to build a new library tucked into a corner of the new condo building to be built on the site. The new library will be smaller than the existing and the business library will be moved to the main library building on Grand Army Plaza. Of course, this being New York, it is quite possible that after the existing library is torn down, the real estate market swoons, financing evaporates, and the site remains an open pit for years and years and years.

  • Quincey

    There is no guarantee that a commensurate library will be built on the existing site. Who gave you that glass of Koolaid? Seriously, do you think it’s going to be (if your scenario is to be considered) affordable housing? It’s going to be more luxury apts and condos. You are so deluded! Sorry! But the libraries slated for sale are in the most expensive areas of real estate in NYC (funny how they’re the only “dilapidated” ones in all 5 boroughs, haha. Donnell had been 88,000 sf; We’ll be lucky if it’ll be 22,000 once finally finished. You sound like one of the real estate sharks circling these valuable properties. Shame on you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iIxVtVD_kVw Tell me where there’s any mention of the new library.

  • Quincey

    Just like Donnell.

  • Quincey

    Oh, and by the way, since you don’t seem to be very acquainted with the inner insidious workings of these detestable plans, $150 million of our tax dollars will be used to permanently defile the landmarked City treasure, the 42 St. library, supposedly to be matched by the selling of Donnell 5 years ago, and Mid-Manhattan and SIBL. $300 m. You’ve got no problem with that?? Are you familiar with the old Penn Station being torn down? Recall they wanted to tear down Grand Central? MoMA’s now planning on tearing down the former location of the Folk Art Museum, hailed as a bold masterpiece when opened in 2001. I don’t yet know the arrangement the Brooklyn library system has with the City, but re: NYPL, that $150m the city will provide could be much be used renovating MML (SIBL was opened in 1996; it doesn’t need renovating). Same for Donnell back when. And for a mere fraction of the cost of $150m, let alone $300m.

  • Quincey

    Yeah, right, keep telling yourself that. I feel sorry for you. And wonder if maybe you have a hidden agenda, Henry LoL.

  • Bkplace

    Clearly we will not agree on this, but I hardly consider myself a shark for wanting a new library for the community. If the concern is the deal itself, let’s lobby our leaders to strike a deal that’s good for the community (affordable housing, full size, etc.). Saying we simply should do nothing to these aging facilities seems short sited.

  • HenryLoL

    There is no hidden agenda. I think quality housing is good for the hood — especially on CPW — and a new smaller library will be better for everyone here. How anyone can debate that is beyond me unless you are just a looney that thinks everything always needs to stay the same. CHANGE IS GOOD! You should feel sorry for yourself, LOL — there is something wrong with you!

  • http://twitter.com/rimler marshasrimler

    I was in that nightmare yesterday. Many ..many citizens were using it-job seekers, children, seniors all sorts of people. It needs to be refurbished like the red cross building -not destroyed and downsized

  • Wiley E.

    Yeah, non-elitists type of people. That is why the elitists want to remove it. To make money for themselves, of course.

  • Disgusted

    Sorry, they have the money to maintain these “aging” facilities without selling off these public assets to private developers. They are going to spend $350M to destroy the historic architecture of NYPL. So if they do not have money to maintain the libraries, where do they find the $350M? And if they have $350M to have Norman Foster redo NYPL, then they DO have money to maintain libraries without selling them off to private developers. Don’t you see the trustees and officials are in cahoots with the developers to sell off our public assets??

  • Disgusted

    Yes, NYC land prices are on fire right now. Developers are desperate to find sites to develop to build condos and apts. So they infiltrate trustees and boards of public institutions to plot with public officials to seize public assets from the public and make these public assets permanently private. NYC public assets–hospitals, libraries need to be PROTECTED. They are closing down hospitals at a time of increasing population so they can sell these sites to developers. Which Mayoral candidate will STAND UP for protecting NYC public assets from sale? Not Christine Quinn, you can be sure.